Australia weighs taking China to the WTO again — this time for a dispute over wine

CNBC reports that Trade Minister Dan Tehan told that Australia is considering whether it should get the World Trade Organization involved in an ongoing dispute with China.

China’s commerce ministry in March announced anti-dumping tariffs between 116.2% and 218.4% on Australian wine imports — measures that are set to last for five years. Last year, it launched an anti-dumping probe into wine imports from Down Under and introduced preliminary duties.

Separately, China levied additional temporary tariffs of around 6.3% to 6.4% in December, following a different probe into Australian wine subsidy schemes.

“We have worked very closely with the Australian wine industry to understand the injury that has been caused by the actions that China’s taken,” Tehan, who is also the minister for tourism and investment, said.

“We’ll be making an announcement on whether we will go to the WTO with regards to wine in the coming weeks,” he said.

Australia is one of the few developed countries in the world that exports more than it imports to China. Relations between Canberra and Beijing soured last year after Australia supported a call for an international inquiry into China’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.