China's Unending Economic Retaliation... Anti-Dumping Duties on Australian Wine

China's Ministry of Commerce imposes up to 212% deposit from the 28th, citing damage to domestic wine industry
Retaliatory measures by China amid COVID-19 responsibility debate

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Jo Young-shin] Chinese authorities have ruled on anti-dumping measures against Australian wine.

On the 27th, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced that the Chinese wine industry has suffered significant damage due to imported Australian wine and decided to implement provisional anti-dumping measures on Australian wine.

The Ministry of Commerce explained that since August, it has investigated the dumping and dumping margins of the products under investigation, whether the products caused damage to the domestic industry and the extent of the damage, and the causal relationship between dumping and the damage.

According to this measure, from the 28th, companies importing Australian wine must pay a deposit to customs authorities at the determined rate.

The deposit ranges from a minimum of 107.1% to a maximum of 212.2% of the import price.

This anti-dumping measure by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce against Australian wine was anticipated.

China has previously banned imports of Australian beef and imposed high tariffs on Australian agricultural products such as barley as retaliation for Australia's political actions, including the COVID-19 responsibility theory and opposition to the Hong Kong National Security Law.

Australian wine accounts for 37% of the annual wine imports to China. This share is significantly higher compared to other countries such as France (27%), Chile (13%), and Italy (6%).

At the start of the anti-dumping investigation by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, Chinese media warned that "due to continuous political provocations by Australian politicians, uncertainty in bilateral relations has increased," and "if anti-dumping tariffs are imposed on Australian wine, the Australian wine industry will suffer a major blow."