The number of vehicles stolen fell 6% to 52,722 in the last financial year, led by sharp improvements in Victoria and other states, the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council says.

Thieves stole 42,145 passenger and light commercial vehicles, down 8% from 2016/17.

The only jurisdictions to see theft rises were Queensland (up 7.8%) and the ACT (up 14.5%).

In Victoria the theft rate declined 17% to 15,164, as the average number of vehicles stolen each day fell to 42 from 50 in 2016/17. But the state remains the place where most vehicles are stolen, accounting for 28.8% of all Australian vehicle thefts in 2017/18.

NSW achieved a 2% drop, the NT 20.3%, Tasmania 20.7% and WA 6.5%.