The Australian Government has been notified that, from 29 March 2024, China will remove its duties on Australian bottled wine.
We welcome this outcome, which comes at a critical time for the Australian wine industry.
The re-entry of Australian bottled wine into the Chinese market will benefit both Australian producers and Chinese consumers.
This outcome affirms the calm and consistent approach taken by the Albanese Labor Government and follows the success of the similar approach taken to remove duties on Australian barley.
Since 2020, China’s duties on Australian wine effectively made it unviable for Australian producers to export bottled wine to that market. Australia’s wine exports to China were worth $1.1 billion in 2019.
We acknowledge and thank Australian grape growers and wine producers for their fortitude and support during a challenging period.
The removal of duties means that Australia will discontinue its legal proceedings at the World Trade Organization.
The Australian Government’s approach is to cooperate with China where we can, disagree where we must and engage in our national interest – the outcomes on barley and wine reflect that approach.
We will continue to press for all remaining trade impediments affecting Australian exports to be removed, which is in the interests of both Australia and China.
Trade diversification is a key element of the Government’s trade policy strategy. The Government will continue to support Australian businesses to sell their world-class products on the global stage.