Trade war goes down under: China slaps 200% tax on Australian wine

BEIJING: China on Friday added wine to the growing list of Australian goods barred from its markets in a trade war against Australia over disputes including its support for a probe into the origin of the coronavirus.

The ministry of commerce imposed import taxes of up to 212.1%, effective Saturday, which Australia’s trade minister said make Australian wine unsellable in China, his country’s biggest export market. China increasingly is using its populous market as leverage to extract political concessions and increase its strategic influence.

Earlier, China stopped or reduced imports of beef, coal, barley, seafood, sugar and timber from Australia after it supported calls for a probe into the origin of the coronavirus pandemic, which began in China in December. China’s ruling Communist Party is trying to deflect criticism of its handling of the outbreak, which plunged the global economy into its deepest slump since the 1930s, by arguing the virus came from abroad, despite little evidence to support that.


The ministry of commerce said the wine tariffs are in response to complaints Chinese producers were damaged by improperly low-priced Australian imports. Australia’s government denied subsidising wine exports. Trade minister Simon Birmingham said the accumulation of Chinese sanctions suggested they were due to “other factors” but gave no details. “The Australian government categorically rejects any allegation that our wine producers are dumping product into China,” agriculture minister David Littleproud said.