I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet.
I acknowledge my parliamentary colleagues, including Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Birmingham and Shadow Minister for Trade and Tourism Kevin Hogan.
I commend the Council for the excellent work that it does in strengthening Australia-China business relations, and congratulate it on what I’m sure will be yet another successful Canberra Networking Day.
As an aside, I really enjoyed last night’s dinner – for those who did not attend, the menu featured some of Australia’s finest lobster, beef and wine.
I want to express my appreciation to the businesses represented here today. You have played a key role in the progress we’ve made in working towards a stable and constructive relationship between Australia and China.
Our two countries’ business and investment ties form the bedrock of our bilateral relationship, and I applaud the resilience and fortitude you have shown in maintaining your stake in this relationship.
Sustained engagement with China at all levels, and a lot of hard work, including by industry, has helped to get us to where we are now.
The Albanese Labor Government continues to work hard to stabilise our relationship with China without compromising our principles.
Our approach is to prioritise dialogue over dispute.
Since becoming trade minister, I have met with my Chinese counterpart, Minister Wang Wentao, eight times.
In April this year I co-chaired the 17th Joint Ministerial Economic Commission with Minister Wang. The economic commission is an important vehicle to discuss trade and investment issues and explore opportunities for cooperation.
And of course, in June, the Prime Minister welcomed China’s Premier Li to Australia.
Premier Li’s visit – which took him and his delegation to my hometown of Adelaide, as well as Canberra and Perth – marked the first visit by a Chinese Premier to Australia since 2017.
This was a milestone visit, which also provided the opportunity for the Albanese Labor Government to press – at the highest levels – for remaining trade impediments on live rock lobster and two red meat establishments to be resolved as soon as possible.
The Prime Minister and I travelled to the China International Import Expo in Shanghai last November to meet with senior business leaders, and to promote Australian tourism and trade opportunities.
The visit was a huge success, resulting in over $500 million worth of business outcomes.
We continue to strengthen our significant people-to-people links through tourism, education, industry and the arts.
Latest arrivals data shows there were over 800,000 short-term visitor arrivals from China in the twelve months to June 2024.
This is more than three times the number of Chinese visitors in the same period to June 2023.
The ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Foundation for Australia-China Relations continues to strengthen risk-informed engagement with China in the national interest, and is improving Australia’s China capability across a range of sectors.
Under its competitive grants program, the Foundation has awarded funding for nearly 160 projects worth around $25 million to date, which has supported Australian farmers, growers, researchers and industry peak bodies.
For example, one grant awarded to the Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre will support Australian barley growers to re-engage and reinvigorate relationships with China and showcase Australian grains innovation for sustainable barley trade.
The work of the Foundation facilitates the dialogue and exchange with China that is so crucial to a stabilised relationship.
To be clear, the Government is clear-eyed about the challenges in our relationship and the differences that we must manage.
We are committed to navigating our differences wisely while always putting our national interest first.
Stabilising trade relations with China remains a priority.
Last year, our two-way goods and services trade with China was worth $327 billion, which equals our combined bilateral trade with the next four largest trading partners – Japan, the United States, South Korea and India.
Trade impediments imposed by China prior to the Albanese Government resulted in over $20 billion reduction in the total value of targeted exports to China in 2022 compared with 2019.
In the last financial year, we’ve exported over $15 billion of previously impeded products to China – coal, cotton, copper ores and concentrates, timber logs, oaten hay, barley and wine – compared to only $4.4 billion the previous financial year.
It’s been a remarkable turnaround.
And we will continue to press for the removal of remaining impediments on live lobster and two red meat export facilities.
The benefits of this trade are flowing to everyday Australians in the form of more well-paying jobs, more business opportunities and a lower cost of living.
The report released by the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre in June this year, commissioned by the ACBC, is a testament to this.
The report found that our trade with China:
- Increased the average Australian household’s disposable income by $2,600 in 2022-23, and
- Supported over 595,000 jobs, equating to 4.2 per cent of total employment in Australia.
These figures speak for themselves. They stand as evidence that the Australia-China trade relationship benefits the everyday Australian.
More broadly, 1 in 4 Australian jobs relate to trade. Jobs in export industries pay 10 per cent more on average. And 31 per cent of Australia’s economic output is supported by trade.
That is why Albanese Labor Government is focused on generating new and diversified trade and investment opportunities for Australian businesses.
Trade diversification remains a key plank of this Government’s trade policy agenda.
As businesses represented here today well know, putting all your eggs in one basket is not good business strategy.
Again, congratulations to the Council on another successful event, it is your sustained advocacy and support, alongside those businesses represented here today, that has been critical as we work towards stabilising this important relationship.
