China has announced it will start reviewing the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tariffs on Australian wines from November 30. This decision, announced by the Ministry of Commerce, is expected to its way to eventually remove the last roadblock to resume normal wine trade between Australia.
The Trade and Economics Bureau, under the Ministry of Commerce, posted the notice on November 30, stating that the review process is expected to conclude by the end of November next year. Stakeholders have 20 days from the issue date to submit written comments on the review.
Contrary to this timeline, earlier statements from Australia’s Prime Minister’s Office and Wine Australia indicated that the review would be expedited, lasting around five months starting from the end of October. If this expedited timeline is adhered to, Australian wines could re-enter the Chinese market as early as April as we have reported.
In March 2021, China imposed punitive tariffs of up to 218% on Australian wines, causing Australia’s annual wine exports to China to plummet from AU$1.3 billion to just AU$8.1 million.
However, the relationship between the two countries has shown signs of improvement this year, following a series of diplomatic and economic cooperations, which culiminated with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s visit to China in November.
In October, Australia has agreed to suspend its WTO wine complaint against China. In exchange China has agreed to take “an expedited review” of its punitive tariffs against Australian wine. The review would take around five months, according to Albanese’s office at the time., adding that it was “confident of a successful outcome.”
