China yesterday launched a probe into wine imports from Australia, the latest salvo in a row between the trade partners.
Relations between Beijing and Canberra have nosedived in recent months after Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison joined US calls for an independent inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic, which was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan last year.
China, Australia’s biggest trade partner, has since threatened economic blowback on a range of Australian goods, including beef and barley, as well as tourism and higher education.
Photo: AFP
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a statement that it would investigate dumping — when a country sells goods in a country for less than it costs at home — throughout last year, at the request of the Wine Industry Association of China.
Wine exports to China hit a record A$1.25 billion (US$900 million) last year, according to Australian government data, making it the biggest market by value for the product.
Australia said it would work with local wine producers to defend the industry against the claims, saying it was second only to New Zealand as the least-subsidized globally.
“While we respect the right of any nation to defend their domestic producers from unfair and uncompetitive trade practices, we reject any claim that Australian wine product has been ‘dumped’ into China,” Australian Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management David Littleproud said in a statement.
Chinese Ambassador to Australia Cheng Jingye (成競業) in April said that Beijing could take such measures.
“The Chinese public is frustrated, dismayed and disappointed with what Australia is doing now,” Cheng told the Australian Financial Review.
“Maybe the ordinary people will say: ‘Why should we drink Australian wine? Eat Australian beef?’” he said.
In May, China suspended imports of beef from four Australian slaughterhouses and imposed 80 percent tariffs on Australian barley imports.
Beijing has also warned Chinese citizens not to visit Australia for study or tourism purposes, alleging anti-Asian racism in the wake of the pandemic.
The moves are widely seen as retaliation for Canberra’s calls for an independent investigation into the origin of the coronavirus.
The two countries were already at loggerheads after Australia hit China with anti-dumping levies on several products.
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