Australia, China to restart annual meetings

The news: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said an annual leaders' dialogue with China will restart, after meeting Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing.

The numbers: Albanese is in China on the first visit by an Australian leader in seven years. China has lifted trade blocks on most Australian exports imposed in 2020 with its customs data on Tuesday showing China's October imports from Australia grew 12% from a year earlier to $11.96 billion, accelerating from a 4.9% increase in September.

The context: President Xi Jinping on Monday signalled that China was ready to move on from recent tensions, saying stable ties between his country and Australia served each other's interests and both should expand cooperation. Premier Li Qiang also told PM Albanese that China is willing to work with Australia to further strengthen dialogue and deepen mutual trust. "The fact that these meetings are now going to continue is very important for our relations," Albanese told Li on Tuesday. Albanese also said he had used the four-day visit to advocate for Australia's interests in trade, human rights, regional and global issues.