INCREASED trade opportunities have been raised by Western Australia Premier Roger Cook with Chinese Premier Li Qiang during a state visit to Western Australian on 18 June.
Mr Cook sees increased trade as part of the energy transition.
Mr Cook and Mr Li visited Tianqi Lithium Energy Australia’s lithium hydroxide facility in Kwinana where between 2020-21 and 2022-23, the value of WA’s lithium concentrate exports to China grew from $471 million to $19.8 billion.
This is a 42-fold increase in export value for the critical battery mineral in two years.
“As the world transitions to a clean energy future, we’re also embracing new opportunities to partner with China on job-creating projects like the Tianqi Lithium facility in my home electorate,” Mr Cook said.
He also emphasized the importance of re-establishing Western Australia’s significant lobster trade.
Direct live lobster exports to China stopped in 2020 when a $2 million shipment which China’s customs agency claimed were contaminated were held up at Shanghai Airport.
In 2023 the total value of lobster exports from WA was estimated to be more than $300 million.
Mr Li also attended a business roundtable and community reception.
With $162.9 billion of goods traded in 2023 China is WA’s largest trading partner, accounting for 58% of the state’s goods exports. WA accounted for 75% of Australia’s goods exports to China in 2023.
In recent months, the Cook government has opened a new trade office in Hangzhou – the state’s second trade office in China.
Around 117,000 Western Australians are of Chinese ancestry, with Mandarin the second-most spoken language at home in WA, after English.
Mr Cook and Mr Li also held a one-on-one meeting, aimed at establishing new direct flights between China and Western Australia.
Last month, the Cook government announced it had secured an ongoing direct flight to the city of Guangzhou – the first permanent direct flight route from WA to China since the pandemic.
Mr Cook said WA trade with China underpins hundreds of thousands of local jobs and helps to power the WA economy.
“We’ve put direct flights front-and-centre of our plan to boost economic ties with China, because we know that more direct flights mean more tourists, more trade opportunities, and more local jobs,” he said.
