Australia Opposes China's Tariff Bombardment... Indicates WTO Complaint

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] Australia has strongly opposed China’s imposition of a 200% anti-dumping tariff on its domestic wine. Australia hinted at the possibility of filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) in response to China’s 'tariff bomb.'

According to major foreign media on the 27th (local time), Simon Birmingham, Australia’s Minister for Trade, Investment and Tourism, held a press conference and pointed out the unfairness of China’s measures. Minister Birmingham criticized, "This measure is incompatible with what China promised through the FTA and the WTO, and it does not align with rules-based trade."

He added, "We will cooperate with the industry to present concrete evidence of how Australia’s wine industry operates during China’s dumping investigation," and stated, "On the other hand, we will protect all our rights, including through the WTO."

Additionally, David Littleproud, Australia’s Minister for Agriculture, expressed his stance, saying, "We will strongly fight against China’s measures."

On the same day, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced a preliminary determination of dumping regarding Australian wine, stating that there is a correlation between the dumping sales of Australian wine and the losses of Chinese wine companies, and declared its intention to impose deposits ranging from 107.1% to 212.2% on importers until the final determination is made.

The deposit acts as a de facto tariff and could severely damage the price competitiveness of Australian wine in the Chinese wine market. According to foreign media in China, the export value of Australian wine to China over the past year was 1.25 billion Australian dollars, a 13% increase compared to the previous year, and Australian wine holds a 37% market share in China’s imported wine market, ranking first in the industry.