minister of trade and tourism australia

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Minister for Trade and Tourism

Senator the hon don farrell.

Senator Farrell was sworn in as Minister for Trade and Tourism on 1 June 2022.

For further information and Ministerial media releases, please see the Minister for Trade and Tourism website .

Assistant Minister for Trade

Senator the hon tim ayres.

Senator Ayres was sworn in as Assistant Minister for Trade on 1 June 2022.

For further information, please see the Assistant Minister for Trade website .

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Australia trade minister seeks to mend ties on visit to China

Australia’s Trade Minister Don Farrell attends a press conference following a meeting with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, in Beijing, China, Friday May 12, 2023.(Florence Lo/Pool Photo via AP)

Visitors wearing face masks walk past a display of Australian wines and other agricultural products at the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, China, Nov. 5, 2020. Australia’s Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell appears to be making progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China during a visit to Beijing. Farrell was holding meetings and visiting businesses on Friday, May, 12, 2023 in a sign that relations were getting back on track. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

In this photo released by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell shakes hands with a girl dressed in traditional costume during a visit to the Forbidden City in Beijing on Friday, May 12, 2023. Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell visited China on Thursday as part of a joint effort to repair ties scarred by political rifts over the past decade. (Michael Godfrey/DFAT via AP)

In this photo released by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell meets with Chen Derong, Chairman of the board for Baowu Steel in Beijing on Thursday, May 11, 2023. Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell visited China on Thursday as part of a joint effort to repair ties scarred by political rifts over the past decade. (Michael Godfrey/DFAT via AP)

In this photo released by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell visits the Forbidden City in Beijing on Friday, May 12, 2023. Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell visited China on Thursday as part of a joint effort to repair ties scarred by political rifts over the past decade. (Michael Godfrey/DFAT via AP)

A visitor looks at a freezer displaying packaged beef from Australian retailer Coles at the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, China, Nov. 5, 2020. Australia’s Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell appears to be making progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China during a visit to Beijing. Farrell was holding meetings and visiting businesses on Friday, May, 12, 2023 in a sign that relations were getting back on track. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Australian made Tim Tams snacks are displayed on a shelf at a supermarket in Beijing, Friday, May 12, 2023. Australia’s Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell appears to be making progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China during a visit to Beijing. Farrell was holding meetings and visiting businesses on Friday in a sign that relations were getting back on track. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

A shopper walks past cartons of shelf-stable milk from Australian dairy Devondale at a supermarket in Beijing, Friday, May 12, 2023. Australia’s Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell appears to be making progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China during a visit to Beijing. Farrell was holding meetings and visiting businesses on Friday in a sign that relations were getting back on track. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Cartons of shelf-stable milk from Australian dairy Devondale are displayed at a supermarket in Beijing, Friday, May 12, 2023. Australia’s Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell appears to be making progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China during a visit to Beijing. Farrell was holding meetings and visiting businesses on Friday in a sign that relations were getting back on track. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

A jar of spaghetti sauce emblazoned with an Australian flag is displayed on a shelf at a supermarket in Beijing, Friday, May 12, 2023. Australia’s Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell appears to be making progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China during a visit to Beijing. Farrell was holding meetings and visiting businesses on Friday in a sign that relations were getting back on track. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

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BEIJING (AP) — Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell held meetings and visited businesses in Beijing on Friday, in a sign of progress in restoring a nearly decade-long rift in relations with China.

In Sydney, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday that the two sides need to “develop understanding and dialogue and I’ve said we’ll co-operate with China where we can, we’ll disagree where we must, and we’ll engage in a national interest.”

China is Australia’s biggest trading partner, with two-way trade totaling $287 billion in 2022. China recently resumed imports of Australian coal, cotton and copper, and Farrell has said on his visit he would push for a review of tariffs on Australian barley.

China blocked such imports in retaliation for moves targeting alleged Chinese interference in Australian elections and political life and in social organizations in the large Australian-Chinese community.

While trade ties seem to be improving, the two countries remain far apart on political and security issues in the Asia-Pacific region.

On his arrival Thursday, Farrell said he hoped his visit would “continue that process of stabilizing our relationship and work through a successful pathway for the resolution of all of our outstanding trade differences.”

“The issues didn’t occur overnight and they’re not going to be resolved overnight,” he said.

At a news conference late Friday, Farrell said he raised concern over the cases of Cheng Lei, a Chinese-born Australia journalist who formerly worked for China’s state broadcaster, and Yang Jun, a Chinese-Australian writer. Both are under detention in China with only vague accusations lodged against them and no word on when they might be tried or released.

In April, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said bilateral relations were unlikely to return to the level of the early 2000s, when trade was separated from political and strategic priorities.

Since then, Australia has expanded security cooperation with the United States, China’s main rival for influence in the Asia-Pacific.

Beijing has strongly criticized Australia’s participation in the so-called AUKUS partnership, which links it with the United States and Britain to create an Australian fleet of eight submarines powered by U.S. nuclear technology, largely in response to China’s growing military assertiveness in the South China Sea, the South Pacific and the East China Sea.

Albanese will host U.S. President Joe Biden and the leaders of India and Japan — countries with which China has active land and sea border disputes — for a May 24 summit of leaders of the so-called Quad nations.

Australia has also blocked the sale of assets, including critical infrastructure, to Chinese companies on national security grounds in recent years.

Farrell also said he would meet with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao following a commitment in February to improve dialogue “at all levels as a pathway towards the full resumption of trade.”

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Australian students learn critical conservation skills in Palau’s world-first shark sanctuary

For 15 Flinders University students, studying marine biology, animal behaviour, and biodiversity and conservation, the chance to learn critical scientific skills in Palau through a New Colombo Plan mobility project has nurtured a renewed enthusiasm for their research and their future careers. 

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We unequivocally condemn the April 13 attacks by the Islamic Republic of Iran and its militant partners on the State of Israel, which involved launching several hundred ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and attack drones against multiple targets, and note this large-scale attack could have caused significant damage and loss of life.

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• The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of State Convene Trade and Environment Meeting with Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras
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Readout of Ambassador Katherine Tai’s Meeting with Australia’s Minister for Trade and Tourism Don Farrell

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October 28, 2023

OSAKA – United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai today met with Australia’s Minister for Trade and Tourism, Don Farrell, ahead of G7 Trade Ministers’ Meeting.

Ambassador Tai shared her impressions of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Official Visit to the United States. She noted that this visit was an opportunity to highlight the close cooperation between President Biden and Prime Minister Albanese and the strength of the U.S.-Australian bilateral relationship.

Ambassador Tai and Minister Farrell also discussed updates on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, including the most recent negotiating round in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Ambassador Tai underscored the importance of maintaining momentum on the Trade Pillar to deliver meaningful outcomes and deliverables in the coming weeks.

Finally, Ambassador Tai and Minister Farrell discussed the World Trade Organization and the United States and Australia’s shared commitment to the multilateral trading system.

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The Hon Madeleine King MP Minister for Resources and Minister for Northern Australia Media Releases Speeches Transcripts Enter search terms Home King The Hon Madeleine King MP Media Releases Critical minerals funding helps deliver future made in Australia Critical minerals funding helps deliver future made in Australia

Joint media release with the Prime Minister the Hon Anthony Albanese MP and Minister for Trade and Tourism, Senator the Hon Don Farrell

The Albanese Government will support a further two major critical minerals projects in Queensland and South Australia, helping deliver the building blocks for a future made in Australia while creating hundreds of jobs and opportunities.

The Government will provide $400 million in new loans to Australian company Alpha HPA to deliver Australia’s first high-purity alumina processing facility in Queensland.

The Alpha HPA project in Gladstone is expected to create around 490 jobs during construction and more than 200 jobs on completion.

Gladstone is a vibrant city of critical importance to the continuing economic prosperity of Central Queensland, and in hosting Queensland’s first high-purity alumina processing facility, it will be at the forefront of Australia’s critical minerals industry.

The company will use Australian-owned IP and technology to process high-purity alumina – a critical mineral used in LED lighting, semiconductors, and lithium-ion batteries and other high-tech applications.

The loans will be provided by Export Finance Australia (EFA) through the Government’s $4 billion Critical Minerals Facility, as well as through the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility and EFA’s Commercial Account.

The Government has also conditionally approved $185 million to Renascor Resources to fast-track the development of Stage One of its Siviour Graphite Project in South Australia. The original loan was approved in February 2022, and this decision means that Stage One of the project will be brought forward sooner.

This project will deliver significant economic benefits to South Australia. Stage One will deliver around 150 construction jobs and 125 jobs once operational in Arno Bay on the Eyre Peninsula, with Stage Two expected to deliver a further 225 construction jobs and more than 120 jobs once it is operational in Bolivar, near Port Adelaide.

Renascor Resources will deliver the sustainable and ethically sourced production of Australian-made purified graphite, for use in lithium-ion batteries required for electric vehicles and renewable technologies.

The Critical Minerals Facility has now committed to support projects and jobs across the country, including in Western Australia, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland.

Quote attributable to Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese:

“We are building a future made in Australia with secure jobs in our regions. Today we are demonstrating what that means here in Gladstone and in South Australia.

“The global race for new jobs and new opportunities is on. Our Government wants Australia to be in it to win it.

“These two critical minerals projects will help secure good and secure jobs in manufacturing, and clean, reliable energy.”

Quote attributable to Queensland Premier, Steven Miles: 

“Today’s announcement by the Prime Minister demonstrates the confidence government and industry have in the great state of Queensland.

“My Government has backed Alpha HPA from the very beginning, by providing State Development Land for this critical minerals facility, more than $21 million in funding to get stage 2 of the Alpha HPA First project off the ground and a $30 million investment to assist Alpha in making sapphire glass, right here in Gladstone.

“Queensland is truly the place to invest and this project delivers more clean economy jobs in Central Queensland processing the critical minerals needed for LEDs, semiconductors and batteries.”

Quote attributable to Minister for Trade and Tourism, Don Farrell:

“Australia is positioned to be a renewable energy superpower.

“Our Government is committed to unlocking new critical minerals projects, to support the net zero transition and secure a future made in Australia.

“These projects will create hundreds of high-paying local jobs and manufacturing opportunities, while also helping to diversify Australia’s critical minerals exports with new opportunities to supply into Japan, Korea and beyond.”

Quote attributable to Minister for Resources, Madeleine King:

“The Australian Government is committed to building our critical minerals resources and processing industries to diversify global supply chains and help the world lower emissions.

“Australia’s critical minerals and rare earths are key to building renewable technologies such solar panels, batteries and wind farms, as well as defence and medical technologies.

“The investments announced today help create a new industry in Australia, supporting local jobs and economic development, and building the bedrock of a future made in Australia.

“The road to net zero runs through Australia’s resources sector.

“Gladstone is a city of great importance to the economic strength of northern Queensland and to the country and this project will put the city at the forefront of Australia’s critical minerals industry.”

Quote attributable to Queensland Minister for Regional Development and Manufacturing, Glenn Butcher: 

“The Albanese and Miles Governments working together on this means support of Alpha HPA’s next stage is more evidence of our commitment to a clean, green future for Queensland.

“This project brings together two of my greatest passions: Gladstone and manufacturing and I look forward to seeing this fantastic job-creating development move forward.

“We will be able to make more things here in Queensland and use the world-class Gladstone port to export our products to the world.” 

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We acknowledge the Traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Owners of the land, sea and waters of the Australian continent, and recognise their custodianship of culture and Country for over 60,000 years.

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Visit to bolster China-Australia biz ties

By ZHONG NAN | CHINA DAILY | Updated: 2023-05-12 07:22

The visit of Don Farrell, Australia's minister for trade and tourism, to China from Thursday to Saturday, is expected to boost bilateral trade and tackle common concerns through economic exchange mechanisms, said government officials and experts on Thursday.

Farrell will co-chair the 16th China-Australia Joint Ministerial Economic Commission with Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao in Beijing, said Shu Jueting, a spokeswoman of the Ministry of Commerce.

This will be the first visit by an Australian trade minister to China in nearly four years. The last China-Australia Joint Ministerial Economic Commission was held in Beijing in 2017.

China hopes that through this visit, the two sides will further implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of China and Australia at their meeting in Bali in November 2022, said Shu.

She also said China hopes to exchange views with Australia on developing bilateral economic and trade relations, addressing each other's concerns and promoting business cooperation.

In a statement on Thursday, Farrell said he will strongly advocate the full resumption of unimpeded Australian exports to China — for all sectors — to the benefit of both countries and in the interests of Australian exporters and producers.

The statement said that the Australian government was pleased with several positive trade developments since the trade ministers of China and Australia agreed to enhance dialogue at all levels to fully resume trade in February. These developments include the resumption of coal, cotton and copper trade and China's agreement to undertake an expedited review of duties on Australian barley.

During his visit, Farrell will meet with some other Chinese officials and business representatives as well as Australian businesses and workers operating in China.

Trade experts said Farrell's visit to China is a key step to stabilize bilateral business ties in the next stage.

Amid the fast-changing global political and economic landscape, dialogue is certainly practical and beneficial. China, as a global manufacturing base that requires imports of ores and coal, and Australia, as a major exporter of materials for industrial use, can establish a complementary economic structure, said Wang Xueling, a researcher specializing in regional economic development at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.

Phillipa Harrison, managing director of Tourism Australia, a government agency responsible for attracting foreign visitors, said with the easing of COVID-19 control measures for international travel to and from China, the agency remains optimistic about the outlook for the industry this year and beyond.

China was Australia's largest source market for both international visits and spending in 2019. About 1.44 million Chinese residents traveled to Australia, making up 15 percent of all international arrivals in the country. In all, they spent around A$12.4 billion ($8.35 billion).

China-Australia trade declined by 3.9 percent year-on-year to $220.92 billion in 2022, data from China's General Administration of Customs showed.

Thanks to improved political and business ties, their total bilateral trade value surged 10.9 percent on a yearly basis to $58.79 billion in the first quarter of this year.

Australia mainly exports iron ore, coal, alumina, copper ore, wool, wine, timber, grains, fruits and aquatic and dairy products to China. Computers, transport equipment, mechanical and electrical products, electric vehicles and chemical products are China's main shipments to Australia.

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Readout of secretary gina m. raimondo’s call with australian minister for trade, tourism and investment of australia dan tehan, office of public affairs.

Today, Secretary Gina M. Raimondo spoke with the Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism, and Investment Dan Tehan to further discuss the development of President Biden’s Indo-Pacific economic framework. Secretary Raimondo and Minister Tehan also shared updates with each other on progress made to relaunch the U.S.-Australia Critical Minerals Working Group, which they jointly announced after their Nov. 17 meeting in Singapore during the Secretary’s trip to the Indo-Pacific region. The Secretary expressed her support for the close and continuing engagement between the Department of Commerce and Australia’s Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Investment and interest in continuing to explore opportunities for increased commercial cooperation.

The government needs to do ‘more work’ to battle inflation

Shadow Trade and Tourism Minister Kevin Hogan discusses the probable cash rate rise.

A regular Sky News contributing economist forecasted there will be three cash rate rises to 5.1 per cent by the end of this year.

“If we had three rate increases over the next 12 months, I think that would cause severe harm to Australian mortgage holders,” Mr Hogan told Sky News Australia.

“What we’re saying is the government need to do more work.

“They’ve spent an extra 200 billion dollars since coming into government which has put more inflationary pressures on."

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Australia extends tariff relief for Ukraine

Joint media release with Senator the Hon Don Farrell Minister for Trade and Tourism Special Minister of State

Australia will extend tariff relief as part of its support for Ukraine and its people in response to Russia’s brutal full-scale invasion.

The announcement follows a meeting overnight between the Treasurer and his Ukrainian counterpart in Washington DC.

The Treasurer told Ukraine’s Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko that the tariff relief was a demonstration of Australia’s continued and unwavering support for Ukraine.

The duty exemption will be extended for two years until 3 July 2026 for goods that are produced and manufactured in Ukraine.

The tariff relief is one part of Australia’s package of defence, economic and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. Australia’s overall support to Ukraine is valued at approximately $960 million, including $780 million in assistance for Ukraine’s Armed Forces.

The measure will see tariffs of up to 5 per cent reduced to zero on Ukrainian goods.

Australia is committed to supporting Ukraine’s economy and its continued participation in international trade as it deals with the ongoing, devastating effects of Russia’s invasion.

The Treasurer met Finance Minister Marchenko as part of a series of meetings with international counterparts for the G20 Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting and the IMF – World Bank 2024 Spring Meetings.

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It has been an honour to serve as Australia’s Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment in the Morrison Government for the past 847 days. I congratulate Dan Tehan on his swearing into this portfolio.

With one in five Australian jobs reliant on trade, our export sector is such a critical part of our economy and will play a crucial role in Australia’s ultimate economic recovery from COVID-19. My number one priority as Trade Minister has been to continue to provide Australian farmers, businesses and investors with better access and more choices to export to markets around the world.

This started with overseeing the implementation of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which provided our first ever trade pact with Canada and Mexico, as well as improved access into markets like Vietnam and Japan. I also had the honour of seeing our bilateral free trade agreements with Peru and Hong Kong come into effect as well as the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which will give our exporters access to a booming market of over 270 million people.

More recently, I signed the 15 nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which cements Australia’s place as an integrated regional partner of the 10 member states of the Association of South East Asian Nations. And, just a few weeks ago, we also saw the entry into force of the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations, which provides new opportunities for economic collaboration with our Pacific Island family.

We have also continued to forge ahead and have seen great progress with negotiations on our free trade deal with the European Union and earlier this year I had the honour of launching negotiations on an ambitious free trade agreement with the United Kingdom. Subject to each of these counterparts showing sufficient will to liberalise their markets, each of these agreements should be concluded within the next year.

In the past few years we have also seen stronger trade ties with India, which last week launched its own companion to our India Economic Strategy, and we continue to make headway in growing our trade engagement across the Middle-East and Africa, and in South America which will be further assisted if we can finalise our Pacific Alliance agreement with Latin American nations.

Our exporters have shown incredible resilience this year, despite massive economic shocks. With the collapse of global aviation when COVID-19 hit, we moved quickly to establish the International Freight Assistance Mechanism to help ensure that sufficient planes are flying out of Australia to get our premium goods to market. So far, it has helped more than $3.5 billion worth of Australian produce reach customers overseas and kept thousands of Australians in jobs.

This month, the Parliament passed landmark reforms to the 40 year old Export Market Development Grants (EMDG) Scheme that will cut red tape and better assist Australian exporters to enter new markets or expand their presence in existing markets.

Providing our farmers and businesses with access to more markets around the world has seen Australia record 34 consecutive monthly trade surpluses, with us routinely exporting more as a nation than we import. This, in turn, contributed in the June quarter last year to the first quarterly current account surplus for Australia since 1975.

We also shouldn’t discount the importance of Australia’s services sector to our economy and jobs. Australia doesn’t just export commodities and agricultural products, and whilst our tourism and international education sector has been severely impacted by COVID-19, our services sector grew to a record $102 billion in 2019. Although it will take a while to get back to these levels, we continue to pursue opportunities in a range of highly skilled capabilities like mining services, Fintech and AgTech that will help drive this recovery.

Likewise, we continue to drive and attract investment in emerging areas such as critical minerals like lithium and rare earths. I am also proud of the progress we have made in the hydrogen space, with a number of exciting and visionary projects already generating significant investment interest. These projects as well as close collaboration with partners such as Japan, South Korea and Germany mean we are well placed to be a world-leader in the production and export of hydrogen.

Australia also continues to lead the charge to modernise trading rules, having last year launched World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations on e-commerce and this year sealed a Digital Economy Agreement with Singapore that sets a standard for much of the rest of the world.

I am also proud of leading ambitions in the Cairns Group – a long-established coalition of 19 nations in the WTO – to pursue the aim of capping and halving agriculture subsidy entitlements by 2030. If achieved, this would be a great result for Australian farmers, some of the least subsidised in the world, by tackling unfair distortions that hurt us in many overseas markets.

It’s also no secret that the WTO itself needs modernising too. Australia played a leading role in forming the Multiparty Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement to maintain a pathway to resolve WTO disputes, which provides an important backstop in resolving current issues with China. We continue to actively advocate for WTO progress and reform wherever possible, because as a mid-sized trading nation it is demonstrably in our interests to have good global trade rules transparently applied.

On the tourism front, it’s no secret our amazing industry, including our intentional education sector, has been deeply impacted by COVID-19. Prior to last summer‘s bushfires and COVID, Australia had achieved record international visitation of 8.7 million and international spend of $45.4 billion in 2019. We also surpassed our Tourism 2020 spend target a year early. As at December 2019, total visitor spend (domestic and international) had reached $126.1 billion.

We continue to implement our strong plan to support our tourism industry, through targeted assistance to specific sectors within the industry to help them rebound and save as many jobs as possible. In this year’s Budget, we also provided a record $231.6 million to Tourism Australia for 2020-21 to ramp up domestic marketing activities to encourage Australians to Holiday Here this Year, travel to bushfire affected areas and ensure the organisation is well placed to aggressively execute new campaigns to again attract international visitors when overseas travel is back on the agenda.

I thank Minister Assisting the Minister for Trade and Investment Andrew Gee, previous Assistant Minister for Trade and Investment Mark Coulton and Assistant Minister for Regional Tourism Jonno Duniam for their support within the portfolio. I especially thank all the staff at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Austrade, Tourism Australia and Export Finance Australia for the incredible work they do here in Australia and overseas, as well as extending my gratitude to all of the Australian exporters, tourism operators and other stakeholders that I have had the pleasure of working with.

I know Dan Tehan will do an exceptional job as the new Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. As the Minister for Finance I look forward to working closely with him to continue to back our exporting farmers and businesses, attract necessary investment and to support our tourism industry to emerge from these challenging times stronger than ever.

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