China will lift anti-dumping tariffs on Australian wine, its Commerce Ministry said Thursday, with Canberra welcoming the end of three years of sanctions amid improved ties as benefitting both Australian producers and Chinese consumers.
The ministry said the duties of up to around 200 percent will be scrapped Friday because they are "no longer necessary" given changes in the wine market in China.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in response that Canberra will discontinue its legal proceedings at the World Trade Organization over the Chinese tariffs on wine.
Sino-Australian ties had deteriorated under the former Liberal-National coalition government of Australia as former Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent and international investigation into the origins of COVID-19, which was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan, sparking a strong reaction from Beijing.
Bilateral tensions have eased following an election win of Australia's Labor government in 2022, prompting Beijing to lift restrictions on imports of Australian coal and barley.
China is Australia's largest trading partner, and its wine exports to the Asian country were worth AU$1.1 billion ($710 million) in 2019, according to Australian figures. The heavy tariffs on wine had effectively made it unviable for Australian producers to export bottled wine to the Chinese market, it added.
Canberra said it will continue to press for all remaining trade impediments affecting Australian exports to be removed, referring to Chinese duties still imposed on beef and lobster.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a press conference Thursday that China will continue to seek common ground with Australia while shelving differences to promote the sound and steady growth of bilateral relations.
