China and Australia will sign a free trade deal on Monday that will open up markets worth billions of dollars to Australian farm exporters and the services sector while loosening restrictions on Chinese investment in the resource-rich nation. The deal, which Chinese President Xi Jinping is due to sign in Canberra during a state visit to Australia, comes after a decade of negotiations. Up to 95 percent of our exports over time will enter the Chinese market tariff free, parliamentary secretary Josh Frydenberg said in a television interview on Sunday. When you consider China is Australias major trading partner, A$150 billion (82.87 billion pounds) worth of two-way trade, this is great news for the Australian cultural sector, the services sector. Australia is attempting to transition from a reliance on exports of minerals such as coal and iron ore to expanding its food and agricultural exports to a growing Asian middle class, moving from a mining boom to a dining boom. Paul Glasson, the National vice President of the Australia China Business Council, hailed the much-improved access for up to 40 service industries including health, law and aged care, as well as for agricultural products such as dairy, rice, wheat, wool, and cotton. The agreement will give Australian dairy farmers tariff-free access within four years to Chinas lucrative infant formula market, minus any of the safeguard caps that currently restrict competitors from New Zealand, the Sydney Morning Herald reported, citing sources.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Nov 2014 08:30:44 +0000
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