News Digest

Australia and China ink billion dollar cattle export deal

One million Australian cattle worth AU$1 billion (US$860 million) will be shipped to China annually in a deal that will double the size of the live export industry, officials and reports said Friday. The deal, which is still being finalised, is expected to be formally announced in the coming days, The Australian newspaper said, with local government frontbencher Christopher Pyne hailing a breakthrough that will help plug China’s beef shortfall. China already buys Australian cows for breeding purposes, but the new deal will see the animals shipped live, then slaughtered to be eaten as beef.

It’s a great breakthrough… we have a free trade agreement with Japan, free trade agreement with South Korea, working on one with China.

Christopher Pyne, Australian government frontbencher

Australia is the world’s leading supplier of live cattle, sheep and goats, particularly throughout Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The live export industry is a vital component of the Australian agricultural sector and currently contributes some $1 billion in export earnings annually to the economy. News of the deal comes with Australia in the final stages of completing a free trade agreement with its top export partner China.