Rhiannon Hoyle of The Wall Street Journal reports Beijing’s review of its duties on Australian wine imports is expected to take five months. She writes:
Australia—Australia will suspend a dispute with China before the World Trade Organization over antidumping duties on Australian wine after Beijing agreed to an expedited review of the measures, another sign of improving ties between the two countries.
Beijing’s review of its duties on Australian wine imports is expected to take five months and Canberra will resume its dispute at the WTO if the duties aren’t removed at the end of the review, Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Sunday. Albanese also said he plans to meet with President Xi Jinping in China next month, the first visit to China by an Australian prime minister since 2016.
Beijing imposed hefty antidumping duties on Australian wine in 2020, saying an investigation found Australian exporters had dumped cheap wine into the Chinese market, hurting its domestic industry. Canberra rejected the findings and, in 2021, requested the WTO establish a panel to examine the matter.
The wine duties were imposed amid rising tensions between the two countries after former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an international investigation into the first outbreak of Covid-19 in central China. Beijing placed restrictions or tariffs on a number of Australian imports such as coal, barley and rock lobsters. China has previously said Australia also raised obstacles to trade. […]
“I look forward to visiting China, an important step towards ensuring a stable and productive relationship,” he said.
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