The last of China’s trade sanctions on Australian exports are expected to end by the end of this year, after Beijing announced an end to the ban on timber imports.
China’s ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian said on Thursday the timber trade would resume immediately after negotiations with Trade Minister Don Farrell.
Mr Xiao signalled the further easing of trade bans, saying “momentum is positive” in winding back the export blocks.
“Australian timber is going back to China,” Mr Xiao said.
“There are other issues on the table … the momentum is positive, both sides have agreed to sit down and talk about our differences.”
Australia’s timber trade with China, which was worth about $1.6 billion a year before Beijing slapped customs restrictions on shipments in 2019, is the latest major easing in sanctions on Australian exports flowing into China, following a resumption of coal trade earlier this year.
James Laurenceson, director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at University of Technology Sydney, called it a significant step that points to a dismantling of all trade blocks this year.
Remaining sanctions
Ongoing restrictions on barley, wine and lobster exports will likely be lifted in coming months, Mr Laurenceson said, with Beijing reviewing the status of its sanctions on Australian barley.
“There were three goods that were hit that Australian producers couldn’t easily diversify to other markets – timber was one of them, the two other were wine and lobster,” Mr Laurenceson said.
“This is a significant, positive development for Australian producers.”
Mr Laurenceson said that with trade in copper, cotton, coal and timber now back on the table, Beijing will likely move next on barley and wine after a set of staggered official policy reviews.
Sanctions on lobsters, which were never formal, could be lifted almost overnight, he said.
“My firm expectation is that in three months there will be no barley tariffs,” Mr Laurcenson said.
“The exact same process could then be applied to the wine dispute.”
Australia’s Trade Minister welcomed China’s backflip on timber sanctions.
“Australian timber was one of the outstanding trade impediments discussed with my counterpart in Beijing last week,” Mr Farrell said.
“This is a great outcome for the Australian forestry sector. Any step towards resolving the trade impediments is welcome.”
Beijing has sought to mend fences with Canberra since the Albanese government came into power last year, with both sides embracing a new-found pragmatism in top-level negotiations.
That involved Foreign Minister Penny Wong stressing that while Canberra and Beijing have numerous differences and disputes, each would instead focus on areas of mutual benefit.
Mr Xiao echoed that sentiment on Thursday, heaping praise on the tenor of talks recently despite Beijing’s opposition to the Quad alliance with the United States, India and Japan.
“Our position, which is pretty clear, we hope that the members of the Quad, and especially Australia as a friendly partner to China, would take into consideration Australia’s interests to keep taking into consideration the relationship with China,” Mr Xiao said.
“I’m looking forward to continuing to communicate with the Australian side on this issue as I have been doing over the last couple of weeks.”
