The situation between Australia and China continues to deteriorate, with the Chinese Communist Party trying to use trade threats to clamp down on Australia, but according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australia’s exports jumped 16 percent to 34.9 billion Australian dollars in December. More than half of the impressive result was attributed to Australia’s exports to China.
Influenced by strong Chinese demand for Australian iron ore and wheat, Australia’s exports to China rose by A$2.3 billion, or 21 percent, in December 2020, creating a trade surplus of A$5.2 billion.
After months of Chinese trade restrictions on Australian exports, Australian Prime Minister Morrison said he would only meet with Xi if there were no conditions attached to restarting dialogue.
Morrison warned that Beijing‘s global outlook is “increasingly at odds” with Australia’s sovereign interests.
According to Feng Chongyi, an associate professor at the University of Sydney, Morrison and the Australian government’s response has been largely consistent.
Associate Professor Feng Chongyi of the University of Sydney, Australia: “He has never said that he wants to fight a trade war with China, his own economic volume is not as large as the United States, and he does not want to use a head-to-head approach, and China in trade, into a confrontation, belligerent state. But, at the same Time, he definitely does not accept China’s extortion, blackmail, or bullying.”
Under the trade friction that has lasted for months, Australia’s exports to China surged in December last year, which shows that China is in rigid demand for Australia’s coal, iron ore and agricultural products.
Feng Chongyi: “The two countries’ economies themselves, are very complementary, and the Chinese government just wants to use economic interdependence as leverage to make Australia bend and do his bidding, or he wants to show that he is very powerful, so he thinks he doesn’t need Australia’s coal, he doesn’t need Australia’s iron, he simply can’t do that.”
The relationship between China, the U.S. and Australia has been in the spotlight since U.S. President Joe Biden took office. Australian Foreign Minister Payne wrote to the media on the 25th, indicating that Australia will work with Washington to defend the security and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region and jointly address the Chinese Communist threat.
Recent Comments