Australian wine pours back into China as tariff-free shipments surge to over US$10 million in April

China imported over US$10 million of wine from Australia in April, up from US$126,000 a year earlier, after it lifted punitive imports tariffs at the end of March

Amid improving relations between Beijing and Canberra, curbs on lobster imports are expected to follow, with Premier Li Qiang set to visit Australia next month

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China imported US$10.4 million of wine from Australia in April. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 4:00am, 23 May 2024Updated: 12:37pm, 23 May 2024

With import tariffs removed for the first time in three years, shipments of Australian wine to China surged in April, with analysts expecting producers to jump back into the lucrative market “quite quickly”.

China imported US$10.4 million of wine from Australia in April, up from US$126,045 a year earlier, representing a roughly eightyfold increase, according to Chinese customs data. Imports by volume, meanwhile, increased more than sevenfold year on year to 462,518 litres (813,918 pints).

As a result, Australia’s share of China’s wine imports rose from 1.45 per cent in March to 10.52 per cent last month, making it the third largest wine supplier after France and Chile.

China lifted its punitive import tariffs of up to 218.4 per cent, which had been in place since March 2021, at the end of March amid improving relations between Beijing and Canberra.

And with Premier Li Qiang expected to visit Australia next month, further relaxations of import curbs are expected, including lobsters.

“If China totally removes its barriers, then all kinds of products can return to normal trading, especially red wine because the demand is so huge,” said Lu Xiang, a research fellow in US studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.