Australia hopes China will lift wine tariffs in coming weeks

Australia's trade minister says he hopes China will lift tariffs that have hurt the country's wine industry in the coming weeks.

"I believe that yesterday's discussions with the Chinese Minister of Commerce will result in them delivering on what they have committed to doing, which is to accelerate the review of tariffs and we will have an outcome in the coming weeks," Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell said on February 27.

Mr. Farrell made the comments after talks on February 26 with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Wentao, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). "He said their processes are on track and we will have the results by the end of March," said Minister Farrell.

China imposed tariffs on key Australian exports such as barley, beef and wine in 2020 as relations between the two countries soured.

This decision is considered a response after Canberra prevented "Beijing's influence-building activities" by refusing to allow Chinese businesses to invest in sensitive areas such as 5G, as well as Australia's call for a public investigation into the origin of Covid-19.

A winemaker turns grapes in barrels at a winery in Tasmania, Australia, June 2014. Photo: Reuters — A winemaker turns grapes in barrels at a winery in Tasmania, Australia, June 2014. Photo: *Reuters*

Chinese authorities raised tariffs on Australian wine from 116% to 218% in March 2021. Australia then filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) against China for "imposing anti-dumping duties" on its wine.

China’s decision to impose tariffs, combined with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, has left many Australian wine producers in crisis. Australian wine trade with China was worth nearly $1 billion in 2019, but is now estimated to be less than $10 million.

Many Australian wine producers are hopeful of returning to China after the country lifted import tariffs, with some saying they have “learned the hard way” about over-reliance on one market and how to cope with market shocks.

But Lee McLean, chairman of an Australian wine group, said there was little confidence that Australian products could regain their full foothold in the Chinese market. “When you leave a market for a period of time, other countries will come in and take market share,” Mr McLean said.

Drinking trends are another factor, according to McClean. “Consumers around the world are drinking less alcohol than they did a few decades ago,” he said. “The same thing is happening in China.”

China has lifted some trade barriers to Australia as bilateral relations improve, including scrapping import tariffs and anti-dumping duties on Australian barley in August 2023. China has also recently resumed buying many of the country’s products, including coal and timber.

Nguyen Tien (According to AFP )

Source link