EXPORTS – AUSTRALIA

Insatiable US demand to buoy Australian beef

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Original article by Cecile Lefort
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 19-Nov-25

Australia exported a record $1.6bn worth of beef to the US in the September quarter. Analysts expect US demand for Australian beef to remain strong, despite the Trump administration’s move to reduce the tariff on beef from rival exporters such as Brazil. Angus Gidley-Baird from Rabobank says this will reduce Australia’s competitive advantage, given that the nation was already subject to a lower tariff on beef exports; however, he notes that the tariff on Brazilian beef will still be higher.

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RABOBANK AUSTRALIA LIMITED

UK farmers have high-end beef with Australia

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Original article by Madeleine Speed, Nic Fildes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 26-Aug-25

The federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has reported that 6,503 tonnes of beef was exported to the UK in the first five months of 2025, which is more than for the whole of 2024. The rise in Australian beef exports to the UK follows the implementation of the free trade agreement between the two countries in 2023, with the increase sparking concern among UK beef farmers that they are being undercut by Australian meat. There are claims Australian beef is produced at a lower standard than British beef, while UK retailers are being accused of going back on a promise to source exclusively British prime cuts

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FORESTRY

Australia accused of breaking its word on exports as Trump presses go on tariffs

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Original article by David Crary, Michael Koziol, Olivia Ireland
The Age – Page: Online : 12-Feb-25

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to impose a tariff of 25 per cent on all steel and aluminium imports to the US on Tuesday, shortly after discussing the issue with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Trump said there will be "no exceptions", although he had earlier told Albanese that an exemption will be considered due to factors such as America’s trade surplus with Australia. The executive order contended that Australia’s exports of primary aluminium to the US have surged in recent years, despite a verbal commitment to limit these exports. The tariffs will take effect from 12 March, giving the government just one month to negotiate an exemption in the lead-up to the federal election.

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

China to restart lobster trade in big breakthrough

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 11-Oct-24

Western Australia’s Premier Roger Cook has welcomed the announcement that China will lift its restrictions on the importation of Australian rock lobsters, saying WA’s rock lobsters are the best in the world. The decision was confirmed by Chinese Premier Li Qiang in talks with the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Laos on Thursday. China’s move to lift its ban on rock lobsters brings to an end four years of trade restrictions that were imposed on $20 billion worth of Australian agricultural exports after the former Coalition government called for an independent inquiry into the source of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH-EAST ASIAN NATIONS

Lithium’s sharp decline to weigh on Australian exports

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Original article by Simone Grogan
The West Australian – Page: Online : 2-Jul-24

The federal Department of Industry, Science & Resources expects the total value of Australia’s lithium exports to have been just $10bn in the year to 30 June. This compares with $20bn in the 2022-23 financial year, with the latest result being affected by a sharp fall in the price of the battery metal. However, the department’s quarterly report concludes that the price of both lithium and copper may have bottomed. It also says the outcome of the US presidential election could potentially accelerate that nation’s transition to renewables and electric vehicles, which in turn could boost demand for Australia’s critical minerals.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, SCIENCE AND RESOURCES

PM plays down Chinese-owned lithium plant

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 13-Jun-24

Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit a lithium processing plant at Kwinana during his official trip to Australia. The plant’s major stakeholder is a China-based company, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has rejected suggestions that the federal government’s Future Made in Australia policy is being undermined by Chinese investment in critical minerals projects. He says Labor values foreign investment, although he adds that the nation must "move up the value chain" rather than merely exporting mineral resources.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

China visit sees $105 billion iron ore exports on the brink

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Original article by Jamie Seidel
News.com.au – Page: Online : 20-Mar-24

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit Australia to hold talks aimed at removing the remaining punitive tariffs on Australian exports. Wang is also expected to push for the easing of restrictions on Chinese investment in Australia, as well as support for China’s bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. However, the talks have coincided with China’s growing push to reduce its dependence on iron ore exports from Australia. BHP CEO Mike Henry recently warned that Chinese-backed producers’ growing dominance of the nickel market could be replicated in the iron ore sector.

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CHINA. MINISTRY OF COMMERCE, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

Australia’s LNG shipments slump for the first time in years

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Original article by Nick Toscano
Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 8-Mar-24

Figures from energy consultancy EnergyQuest show that Australian liquefied gas exports declined to 80.7 million tonnes in 2023, following a record-breaking year in 2022 when 81.2 million tonnes was shipped. It represents the first year-on-year decline since 2015, and with existing oil and gas fields drying up and limited investment in new fields, it is likely that Australia’s LNG production has peaked. Although Australia still earns tens of billions a year from LNG exports, its role as a key source of greenhouse gas emissions that scientists say need to be reduced in order to combat the worst impacts of global warming has seen the LNG industry become a major cause of environmental concern.

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ENERGYQUEST PTY LTD

Imports fall as households cut back

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 6-Mar-24

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the nation’s current account surplus rose to $11.8bn in the December quarter, compared with just $1.3bn in the three months to September. Import volumes fell by 2.8 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms in the December quarter, with import volumes of consumer goods down 5.4 per cent. Export volumes were down 0.4 per cent, although higher iron ore and coal prices boosted overall export prices by 3.1 per cent. Meanwhile, economists expect the national accounts data to be released on Wednesday will show that GDP growth was 0.2 per cent in the December quarter.

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AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Fall in coal, gas exports to crimp growth

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Original article by Michael Read
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 6-Dec-23

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the nation recorded a current account deficit of $0.2bn for the September quarter. It is just the second quarterly current account deficit since 2019, and follows a sharp fall in coal and LNG export volumes. The ABS estimates that a downturn in net exports will reduce GDP growth for the September quarter by about 0.6 percentage points. Annual growth is tipped to have fallen to 1.9 per cent; this would be the first time this has been below two per cent since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. The quarterly national accounts data will be released on Wednesday.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS