Bottles of Australian wine on the shelf of a supermarket in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province on November 27, 2020 Photo: VCG

Australian winemaker Penfolds is optimistic about opportunities in the Chinese market, and is aligning closely with Chinese partners, Tom King, Penfolds Managing Director told the Global Times recently.

King's optimism comes as the bilateral relations continue to improve with the upcoming visit of Chinese Premier Li Qiang to Australia later this week, the first visit by a Chinese premier since 2017.

Speaking about the upcoming visit, King said that "it's pleasing to see a stabilizing of relations between the Australian and Chinese governments, including regular high-level visits between the two countries. Visits like this are very welcome and support the strengthening of economic and cultural ties between Australia and China."

The bilateral relations have taken on a positive turn since leaders of the two countries met in Bali, Indonesia, during a G20 summit in November 2022, paving the way for the later recovery in bilateral economic and trade ties.

Thawing relations have been highlighted by the intensive activities between government officials and business groups. On the basis of the positive trend of the improved ties, major products exported from Australia to China have largely recovered, from coal, to barley to wine.

Speaking about China's lifting of punitive import tariffs on Australian wine at the end of March, King said that this is very encouraging and welcoming to Australian businesses.

"We were well prepared for the removal of tariffs and have begun executing our plans to re-establish distribution of our premium and luxury Australian wine in China," he said, noting that the initial response to the return of Australian wine to China has been encouraging.

According to industry data, Australian wine accounted for 35.54 percent of China's wine market in 2019, surpassing France and holding the largest market share of any country, before losing market share after the imposition of anti-dumping tariffs.

The removal of tariffs was a welcome news for the Australian wine industry and their consumers in China, King noted.

Australian wine imports have undergone a notable shift. Prior to the tariff cancellation, imports from Australia were scarce. However, in the period from late March to April, after the tariffs were lifted, China's wine imports from Australia surged to approximately 2.65 million kilograms, with a total value exceeding 110 million yuan, according to the latest data from the General Administration of Customs.

King said that the company's commitment to their local customers, partners and consumers in China never wavered, with Penfolds working hard to maintain its high brand awareness with support from the 100 workers based in China.

"The removal of tariffs is definitely a positive for our business, and we look forward to bringing more of our Australian wine back into the China market," he said.

Looking ahead, King said that "we are optimistic about opportunities for our business in China, and our commitment to China has only grown stronger with the release of our first China-made Penfolds wine."

"We will continue working with local winemaking regions in China to make our China Penfolds wine and look at future opportunities to continue to invest and promote wine from these regions," King said.