Australia and Great Britain have agreed in negotiations on a free exchange of goods. Prime Minister Boris Johnson reached an agreement with his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison on the future partnership. It is the first individual trade pact that the UK will conclude after Brexit. Numerous tariffs – among others, on wine from Australia – will be abolished.
Australia's wine industry welcomes the new cooperation: "The United Kingdom is an incredibly important market for Australia's grape and wine businesses, and British consumers are some of the most enthusiastic Australian wine aficionados," said Tony Battaglene, Chief Executive of Australian Grape & Wine.
According to Battaglene, the value of Australia's wine exports to the UK grew by 33 percent to AU$461 million in the year to 31 March 2021, representing more than 17 percent of the total value of Australia’s exports over this period
The details of the final agreement are still to be finalised. "We're hoping the final text of the agreement will address a range of costs and barriers Australian wine exporters currently face in the UK. We know there is more work to do on the detail, but the elimination of tariffs is critical for our sector. Other areas we are hoping to see progress on, include simpler certification requirements, and improvements in our ability to further process and package Australian wines in the UK market, which will drive innovation, create jobs here and in the UK, and reduce our carbon footprint."
The UK is currently seeking agreements with all trading partners for the future exchange of goods, which was made more difficult by Brexit.
An agreement has already been reached with the EU that excludes customs duties. Nevertheless, in most cases trade is associated with considerable bureaucracy and additional work compared to the pre-Brexit period.
Read more about this soon on Meininger's Wine Business International.
