Australia & China: China delays decision on Australian barley tariffs

Australia said on July 12 it was disappointed that China has asked for another month to complete a review needed to lift tariffs on barley and warned it would resume a case at the World Trade Organization (WTO) if there was further delay, Nasdaq reported.

Australia on April 11 agreed to temporarily suspend a case at the WTO over China's anti-dumping and countervailing duties on barley after Beijing said it would hasten its review on tariffs.

It was agreed then by the major commodity trade partners that China would finish the review in three months, with a possible fourth if required.

"China has now requested this one-month extension, which we have agreed to," a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement.

"While we are disappointed China's review could not be completed within the initial three months - we remain hopeful the impediments will be lifted in the near future."

China's move to delay its decision on barley tariffs comes as Canberra seeks to stabilise ties with Beijing and remove trade barriers after relations soured when Australia called for an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19, angering Beijing.

Diplomatic tensions have eased since the centre-left Labor government returned to power in May 2022. Chinese purchases of Australian coal resumed in January after almost three years, and timber in May, and imports of beef have accelerated.

Farrell visited Beijing in May, the first by an Australian trade minister since 2019, and last month said he expected a "favourable decision" from China, Australia's biggest trading partner, on barley tariffs.

In 2020, China imposed combined duties of 80.5% on Australian barley for five years prompting Australia to launch a formal appeal to the WTO, which later set up a dispute settlement panel.

"If the duties are not lifted at the end of the four-month period, Australia will resume the dispute in the WTO," the government spokesperson said.