Wakefield Taylors Family Wines, one of South Australia’s premier wineries, has forged a new distribution partnership with Jebsen Wines & Spirits to bolster its foothold in Hong Kong and Macau, laying the ground work for eventual and fast acess to the Chinese market once China reopens within days.
The new parternship officially announced in Hong Kong this month follows the news that China proposed an intrim decision on March 12 to formally lift up to 218% punitive tariffs on Australian wine that had for three years cripped local wine industry. .
As we have reported China has proposed lifting the tariffs after five months of expedited review. The formal removal is expected to be announced soon within weeks if not days. This follows a series of positive developments as Australia and China, its largest trading partner, are rebuilding ties after more than three years of strained relations since the start of covid pandemic.
Anticipation for re-opening to China, Australia’s once biggest wine export market, started building when China agreed to formally review the wine tariffs that had corked Australia’s AU$1.2 billion annual wine exports.
As a result, Australian wine exports to tax-free Hong Kong bordering the mainland climbed to HK$1.44 billion (US$184.1 million) last year.
This optimism fueled a strong uptick towards the end of the year. Trade data showed that Australian wine makers sent almost 2.5 million litres worth $65.5 million to Hong Kong in December, the highest monthly total since September 2019.
William Dong, CEO of DMG Fine Wines, which owns Handpicked Wines and House of Arras, has previously told Vino Joy News that the wine company currently has 10 containers of wine in Hong Kong awaiting the reopening of the Chinese market.
Hiring for mainland staff for several Australian wine companies have also quietly rolled out, as companies including Treasury Wine Estates, parent company of Penfolds, Wakefield, Auswan to name a few have prepared staff on the ground.
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