Australia

Àodàlìyà

澳大利亚

and / with

yǔ

与

European Union

Ōuméng

欧盟

after going through

lìjīng

历经

eight years

bā nián

八年

formally

zhèngshì

正式

to conclude

wánchéng

完成

free trade agreement

zìyóu màoyì xiédìng

自由贸易协定

negotiations

tánpàn

谈判

。

New Words

News in English

Australia and EU Conclude Free Trade Agreement Negotiations After Eight Years

Australia and the EU announced on March 24, 2026 that they had concluded free trade agreement negotiations after eight years, covering goods trade, services, investment, and sustainable development. The agreement still requires parliamentary ratification by both parties before it can take effect.

On March 24, 2026, Australian Prime Minister Albanese and European Commission President von der Leyen announced that both sides have concluded free trade agreement negotiations. This agreement conclusion ended eight years of consultations, described by both leaders as a win-win agreement. The agreement covers goods trade, services sector, investment and sustainable development areas and so on, expected to significantly boost bilateral trade scale. Regarding agricultural products, the agreement will gradually eliminate EU tariffs on Australian beef and lamb and wheat. However, some European farming groups expressed concern about this. The EU side stated that the agreement will deepen both sides' cooperation in green economy and digital trade areas. The agreement still needs to go through both sides' parliaments for ratification before it can formally take effect, expected to require several years. Analysts pointed out that this agreement helps to consolidate strategic cooperative relationships among Western democratic economies to hedge against profound changes brought about by the global trade landscape uncertainty.

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