China plays hardball on trade as Australia tensions escalate

Beijing punishes Canberra with tariffs and bans for COVID-19 inquiry push

China is Australia's largest trade partner, accounting for 26% of its exchange with the world, with Australian exports to China valued at a record AU$153 billion last year. © Getty Images

IAN LLOYD NEUBAUER, Contributing writer

June 16, 2020 14:43 JST

SYDNEY -- One-hundred thousand Australian dollars ($70,000).

That's how much Robert Miolini, a farmer in the Wheatbelt region in the state of Western Australia, lost in future earnings when China announced plans to impose a crippling 80 percent five-year tariff on Australian barley last month, citing anti-dumping allegations.