What would happen if Australia stopped selling iron ore to China?

“First, it would mean too big a disruption to the Chinese economy.” Iron ore imports from Australia are worth $85 billion annually, and so far, the agricultural imports hit by China’s tariffs and bans are worth just $6 billion, he said. “China would not be able to make up its iron ore needs from other sources.”

Does China rely on Australia for iron ore?

The Australian iron ore industry had been built to primarily supply Japanese steel mills, but when China arrived on the scene in the 1980s, it expanded quickly to meet the new, enormous demand. The Chinese economy became highly reliant on the process of turning iron ore into new buildings and infrastructure.

What does China rely on Australia for?

Although dwarfed by exports from iron ore, Australia has become a major source of gas, wool, wine, beef and seafood over the past decade and a half. China’s largest sources for Australia’s main exports in 2018 and 2019, measured in USD. Australia is by far China’s largest source of iron ore, coal, gas and wool.

How much does Australia depend on China?

GT survey shows 49.6\% say Australia ‘too dependent’ on China economically – Global Times. Almost half of the Chinese participating in the latest Global Times survey believe that Australia is “too dependent” on China in terms of its economy, up by 6.4 percentage points compared with a year ago.

How much iron ore does Australia supply to China?

In financial year 2021, the value of iron ore exported from Australia to China amounted to around 126.8 billion Australian dollars. China was by far the leading export destination for Australian iron ore in terms of value in this time.

Why does China import iron ore from Australia?

China is largely dependent on Australia and Brazil for the iron ore needed to fuel its enormous steel-making capacity. It is believed domestic production currently makes up less than 20 per cent of its needs.

Does China rely on iron ore?

China normally takes around 70\% of the seaborne trade in iron ore, or around 1 billion tonnes, but it relies on domestic production for a further 900 million tonnes. China’s iron ore reserves are low quality and require expensive heat treatment before they can be fed into steel mills.