Australia's winemakers are scrambling to find new buyers around the world after China imposed hefty tariffs on the industry, effectively cutting it off from its most important export market.
Beijing's decision last week to impose tariffs of up to 212% on Australian wine imports has endangered business with mainland China, according to Tony Battaglene, CEO of Australian Grape and Wine, a national association.
Battaglene works with around 800 wine producers in Australia who have "built their businesses" around exporting to China and are now left with no backup plan, he added.
"We were surprised, we were shocked," Battaglene told CNN Business. "Having the extent of these interim tariffs, I mean essentially they will close the market to Australian bottled wine, to premium wine, in China. There's no way that we can compete at those levels."
China's Commerce Ministry announced Friday that its decision was made after finding preliminary evidence of dumping. Australian officials have bitterly protested the move, saying that China has been unable to provide proof.
The wine war is taking place against the backdrop of a wider deterioration in relations. Australia has upset China this year by calling for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. Beijing later targeted Canberra over trade, namely by suspending some imports of beef and slapping heavy tariffs on barley.
The tariffs on wine, which took effect on Saturday, have forced businesses to scramble. After the announcement, some container ships that were en route to mainland China had to turn back to Australia, according to Battaglene.
編輯：Frida Xu
