Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday said that his government wants to diversify trade and foreign investment partners, as he prepares to lead a business delegation to India, which he said shares Australia’s democratic values.
Australia wants “greater diversity in who we trade with — and greater variety in what we trade, meaning our economy is more resilient and more secure,” he said in a speech at the Australian Financial Review Business Summit in Sydney.
China is easily Australia’s largest trading partner, although a diplomatic dispute has resulted in what Australia calls “trade blockages” being imposed by China on a raft of Australia’s exports. Canberra has asked Beijing to remove those blockages as the two nations resume talks after a years-long diplomatic freeze.
Photo: Bloomberg
Business leaders across transport, resources, finance, higher education, architecture and energy are today to accompany Albanese to India, Australia’s sixth-largest trading partner.
The delegation includes Macquarie Group CEO Shemara Wikramanayake, Commonwealth Bank of Australia CEO Matt Comyn, Fortescue Metals Group founder Andrew Forrest, Universities Australia CEO Catriona Jackson, and executives from BHP Group Ltd, Rio Tinto Ltd and Graincorp Ltd.
India and Australia are security partners as members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, which also includes the US and Japan, and frequently highlights democracy as a basis for cooperation.
“Our two nations share a rich history — bound by our democratic values and enlivened by genuine friendship and fierce sporting rivalry,” Albanese said.
Australia would supply critical minerals to India, while also making electric vehicle components such as batteries and other green energy products in Australia, he said.
“We can do all these things, as well as remaining a trusted and reliable supplier of energy to key trading partners such as Japan and the Republic of Korea,” he added.
Albanese said that Australia would be “deepening and diversifying our international investment and trade links.”
Australia is the largest supplier of iron ore to China, but is seeking to diversify its customers for critical minerals, and last month blocked a Chinese investment in a rare-earths miner on national interest grounds.
In response to questions about China, Albanese said that the relationship was “more stable,” and his government had sought a return to diplomacy, while recognizing differences in values and political systems.
“We want a more stable, secure region,” he said.
Meanwhile, Australian beef, lobster and dairy exporters are starting to reap the benefits of better relations with China, Australian Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Murray Watt said.
There is emerging evidence that Australian lobster exporters are not seeing the same obstacles from Chinese authorities that they previously had, while there are early signs that impediments to beef and dairy shippers are also beginning to ease, Watt said at a conference in Canberra yesterday.
“I recognize that it’s only pretty small steps at this stage, but it’s very positive steps,” Watt said. There was still “further to go” for exporters in some industries, he said.
Australia would be seeking to resolve its remaining differences with China with dialog, rather than through legal cases and adversarial means, Watt said.
Still, he called for increased diversification of Australia’s export markets.
“It’s a combined approach about trying to reopen that big market, while also making sure we’ve got alternatives,” he said. “But I think there’s some promising signs and we’re going to keep working on it.”
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
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