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China-Australia relations: icy diplomatic ties leave Australian exporters ‘vulnerable’, despite resilient trade
- Australia’s overall exports to China increased 21 per cent year on year to US$133 billion in 2021, according to figures from IHS Markit
- But political tensions between the trading partners, which show no sign of easing, remain a source of anxiety for Australian exporters
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For entrepreneurs like Annie Liu, a positive relationship between Beijing and Canberra has a direct impact on the image of her Australian-made products in the Chinese market.
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Her Sydney-based start-up Visdon, which makes health supplements, relies on exports to China for about 90 per cent of its business.
“When Chinese consumers have a feeling that Australia is not a friendly country, they tend to avoid Australian-made products as long as they have a choice,” said Liu, who works as an administrative secretary for the company.
Deteriorating trade and diplomatic ties between the two nations have been a source of anxiety for Australian exporters like Liu over the past few years.
The most vulnerable sectors are those supplying goods that China can readily source from other countries
Following a series of political disputes, including Canberra’s call for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus, Beijing imposed a range of trade actions on Australia.
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