Overview

• Treasurer Jim Chalmers will co-chair the Australia-China Strategic Economic Dialogue with He Lifeng, chair of China's National Development and Reform Commission.
• This visit is part of the Albanese government's efforts to reestablish dialogue with China, Australia's largest trading partner.
• Bilateral relations had soured under former Prime Minister Scott Morrison, particularly after Australia's call for a COVID-19 origins investigation in 2020.
• China had imposed trade bans on Australian products, costing exporters up to 20 billion Australian dollars annually, but most of these obstacles have now been removed.
• Australia is also seeking to strengthen economic ties with India, with recent discussions on a new bilateral free trade deal.