Australia resumes sending barley to China after tariffs scrapped

The news: Australia has restarted the shipping of barley to China after Beijing scrapped punitive tariffs on the grain earlier this month, ending a more than three-year effective trade block. The first shipment left Western Australia on Tuesday morning.

The numbers: China introduced 80.5% anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Australian barley in May 2020. China had previously been Australia's biggest buyer of barley, with trade worth around $1 billion in 2018.

The context: Beijing removed the tariffs after Australia agreed to drop its World Trade Organisation challenge against China, its biggest trading partner. Australia's Trade Minister Don Farrell said there was still work to be done in removing trade barriers to Australian wine, lobster and beef exports in Chinese markets.