New Zealand dairy products can enter China duty-free, last tariffs removed under FTA
- Imports of milk powder were subjected to the longest phase-out under the New Zealand-China free trade agreement signed in 2008
- New Zealand’s Trade Minister Todd McClay says the removal is expected to deliver tariff savings of US$221 million per year
“This is good news for our dairy sector. The removal of these remaining tariffs is expected to deliver additional annual tariff savings of approximately NZ$350 million [US$221 million],” Trade Minister Todd McClay said in a statement.
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“The [free trade agreement] continues to deliver benefit to the New Zealand economy and to underpin the New Zealand-China trade relationship.”
Safeguard duties are emergency tariffs that countries use to shield domestic industries against intense competition from a sudden surge in imports of a particular product.
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The so-called special agricultural safeguards mechanism in the free trade deal was designed as a temporary measure. The tariff preferences are applied up to a designated volume and China’s standard tariff applied to imports above the safeguard trigger.
Safeguards duties on milk and cream, butter, and cheese ended in 2021, while those on milk powders ended on December 31, 2023.
