Home > Latest News > Chinese Consumer Products Under Threat After China Threatens 80% OZ Barley Tariff

Chinese Consumer Products Under Threat After China Threatens 80% OZ Barley Tariff

China is trying to flex their muscle by threatening to impose an 80% tariff on Australian Barley for the simple reason that they are upset that the Australian Federal Government has called for a full and honest investigation into the cause of the Coronavirus, their actions has resulted in a backlash against Chinese Companies selling goods in Australia.

What they’ve chosen to do is ignite an 18-month-old argument about Barley which was kicked off when Huawei got banned in Australia for security reasons claims observers.

Farmers and grains industry leaders have maintained all along that the 18-month-long investigation is politically motivated and grew out of issues such as Huawei and national security.

China claims that Australian Barley is subsidised.

OECD ratings show Australian farmers are among the least subsidised in the world whereas Chinese agriculture is among the most subsidised, at three times the OECD average.

The latest Barley threat comes in response to an explicit threat from Chinese ambassador Cheng Jingye that our pursuit of a global COVID-19 review could spark a Chinese consumer boycott of significant Australian services and products, Senator Payne rejected “any suggestion that economic coercion is an appropriate response to a call for such an assessment, when what is needed is global co-operation”.

Earlier this month Cheng said Australia’s diplomatic push would spark Chinese tourists to have “second thoughts” about coming to Australia, while parents of students would also think whether “this is the best place to send their kids here”.

Following their latest threat social media is awash with consumers calling for people to stop buying Chinese branded products such as Eufy security cameras, which the Chinese maker recently tried to make out was “popular” in the USA despite few retailers ranging the questionable security product, also under threat are Hisense TV’s, Huawei Oppo, Realme and Xiaomi smartphones, also on the list is Midea appliances, Hair and Fisher & Paykel a 100% owned Chinese Company.

Hisense appliances which include refrigerators, as well as the Huawei owned ASKO a Company they acquired because they were struggling to get into the European market with their Hisense brand which was rejected by consumers in the US market are also threatened.

In the USA Hisense moved to selling Toshiba branded TV’s and appliances because US consumers rejected the Hisense brand. Huawei and Oppo smartphones are also not sold by mainstream CE Retailers or carriers such as AT&T.

In the appliance market Midea who moved to set up their own retail network in Australia acquired the Toshiba appliance brand in an effort to hide the fact that they were selling and marketing a 100% Chinese product under the guise that it was Japanese.

As the drama unfolds, Australia is not ruling out taking China to the World Trade Organisation should Beijing make good on a growing threat to impose crippling tariffs of more than 80 per cent on imports of Australian barley.

The move comes as Australia is set to reap a record Barley market which Chinese buyers

The fresh ultimatum, 10 days from the deadline, coincides with threats from the Chinese embassy late last month toward Australian commerce after Scott Morrison insisted on an investigation into the origin and spread of the coronavirus.

The government believes the ultimatum is a “test” by Beijing of the new climate.

Trade Minister Simon Birmingham stood firm against the imposition of what he called unjustified duties threatened by China.

“We hope that we can, over the coming days, ensure a positive outcome and that is that Australian farmers and barley producers do not receive undue subsidies and do not dump their product on foreign markets,” he said.

Observers claim Australia could lose billions of dollars every year under a Chinese boycott which could include, universities, tourism and agriculture as tensions intensify between Beijing and Canberra over the handling of the coronavirus outbreak.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne recently slapped down China’s unprecedented threat of economic retaliation for the Morrison government’s push for a global review into the origin and handling of COVID-19, as national security experts warned Australia needed to reduce our economic reliance on our biggest export market.



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