https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-04-04/australia-india-free...

https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-04-04/australia-india-free-trade-agreement-winners-and-losers/100963986

A new interim Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Australia and India designed to reduce Australia's economic dependence on China has opened significant market opportunities for some industries, but others have been shut out.

Australian wine exporters and sheep farmers are among those who will see tariffs significantly reduced.

But the dairy and grain industries are calling for better deals, claiming the agreement is a major lost opportunity for market expansion.

Australian wine producers were left with a giant hole in the export market in 2020 when the Chinese government announced it would place tariffs of up to 200 per cent on all Australian wine.

Australian Grape and Wine chief executive Tony Battaglene said the new deal with India would not recover all the losses, but was a vital step towards addressing the national oversupply of wine.

"The agreement is beneficial for very high-value wine producers, many of which are small and medium-sized businesses," he said.

"They will now have confidence to explore new opportunities in the Indian market as the staged tariff reductions are implemented.

"The China market was worth $1.2 billion before it was essentially closed a couple of years ago — we know we can't recover that overnight."

Exports of Australian wines to India increased by 71 per cent by volume and 81 per cent by value in 2021, albeit off a very small base.

Mr Battaglene said the industry was looking to expand into south-east Asia, India and Scandinavia while growing established markets such as the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Australian Grape and Wine has also received a $1,817,000 grant from the federal government to help improve international market access.