More than 12 months after China lifted its $1.6b ban on log exports, relations with Australia are on the improve, with Anthony Albanese, Australia’s Prime Minister, set to welcome Premier Li Qiang, the Chinese number two, to Canberra this weekend.
“This will be the first visit to Australia by a Chinese Premier since 2017,” according to Prime Minister Albanese, “representing another important step in stabilising our relationship with Canberra.”
The visit follows Premier Qiang’s visit to Wellington starting today, which is also the first in seven years, with Beijing looking to improve relations with it’s closest Western alley.
As it stands, China is still Australia’s top export destination, representing more than 25% of the country’s total export trade. This includes more than 90,000 cubic metres of log exports that now pass through the country’s mega port system—a sharp rebound after the Chinese lifted a ban on exports over bark beetle concerns.
According to the most recent figures obtained by the Australian Department of Agriculture and China Customs (up to March 2024), more than 66,000 cubic metres of sawlog (an increase from 51,500 in February) and 25,600 cubic metres of pulp (an increase from 18,300 last month) were in cargo at Chinese ports—both a rapid rise from pre-2024 numbers.
However, whilst the figures point to an improved relationship, it is a steep decline from the pre-COVID peak, with China taking 500,000 cubic metres of softwood (or 99% of total exports) in May 2019.
In addition to log exports, woodchip exports are also on the rise, with China Customs reporting that Australian exporters were responsible for more than 229,300 cubic metres of wood chips passed through China in April 2024 – a 12% increase from April 2023.
“Australia continues to pursue a stable and direct relationship with China, with dialogue at its core,” Prime Minister Albanese said, adding that “overwhelmingly, the impediments that were there to our trade have been removed in recent times, and we are seeing the benefit of that through our export in coal, our wine, our barley, and our other products.”
- To learn more about China and its role in the global forest economy, click on Wood Central’s exclusive interviews with the authors of China—Forest, Log & Lumber Outlook – the world’s most comprehensive report on the Chinese forest economy. To learn more about the log export imposed by China on Australia and its role in diversifying Australia’s log export markets, click on Wood Central’s special feature.
