CANBERRA: Australian companies see working with China as a way to enhance global competitiveness and integrate in global value chains, finds a new report on bilateral trade. Two-thirds of the 209 Australian companies surveyed in the 2014 Australia-China trade report say trade with China has increased their competitiveness both domestically and globally while 80 per cent of those surveyed see China as part of their global value chain.
Working with Chinese state-owned enterprises can be especially beneficial to Australian businesses in terms of access to restricted industries such as transportation and in overcoming market access restrictions, trade barriers and providing intellectual property protection.
Commissioned by the Australia China Business Council and sponsored by the National Australia Bank (NAB), the report takes a broad look at what Australian companies have gained by partnering with China.
Direct trade with China has contributed 5.5 per cent to the Australian economy, with nearly 200,000 Australian jobs sustained by direct exports to China.
The report also finds China is the largest importer of Australian agricultural products and the third largest buyer of Australian manufactured goods.
“Links with Chinese companies afford Australian businesses access to new markets and the ability to distribute goods and services more broadly to both Australian and Chinese consumers,” said David Thorn, NAB head of institutional banking Asia and global head of consumer sectors.
China is Australia’s largest export market for both goods and services. Australia’s exports to China exceeded US$100 billion in 2013, with China accounting for almost a third of Australia’s total exports, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
