The Australian Government is moving swiftly to ratify a free trade agreement with China (ChAFTA) before the end of the year, in order to gain maximum benefit from the bilateral deal, according to federal senator Richard Colbeck.
Should the trade pact be signed and implemented over the coming two months, Australian exporters will benefit from an immediate round of tariff cuts, followed by a second round of cuts early next year.
The push gained momentum on Thursday (21 October) after enabling legislation passed through the Australian House of Representatives.
“It is excellent news that the enabling legislation has passed the House of Representatives today and Labor has finally recognised what we’ve been saying all along - this agreement will open up opportunities worth billions of dollars with our biggest trading partner,” Colbeck explained.
Colbeck, a Tasmanian senator and the minister assisting the federal minister for trade and investment, said ChAFTA would bring enormous benefits to his home state. Tasmanian apple and cherry producers have carved out a niche foothold in the Chinese market over recent seasons after becoming the first Australian state to secure direct access into the People’s Republic for both commodities.
“ChAFTA contains a series of excellent outcomes for the Tasmanian economy and will have flow-on effects for jobs and economic growth,” Colbeck said. “The Australian Government’s number one priority is to do everything we reasonably can to ensure ChAFTA is brought into force before the end of this year. We want to enable the benefits to flow quickly to our exporters, consumers, and importers.”
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