Exclusive Interview with the Australian Consul General in Guangzhou: Guangdong Is the Trade Gateway between China and Australia, and We Hope to Explore New Avenues for Cooperation through APEC

Southern Finance 21st Century Economic Report reporter Hu Huiyin, Guangzhou report

China will serve as the host economy for the 2026 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). This year, it will host the 33rd APEC Informal Leaders’ Meeting in Shenzhen, Guangdong, in November.

As one of the APEC member economies, Australia attaches great importance to the steady improvement in trade performance between Guangdong and other APEC economies. Recently, Australian Consul General in Guangzhou Kang Tianmo (Dr. Timothy Kendall), in an exclusive interview with a reporter from 21st Century Economic Report, said that Guangdong is China’s window for foreign trade. The most typical example is that Australia imports large quantities of telecommunications equipment, computing equipment, furniture, and electric vehicles from China, much of which is produced in Guangdong. This is also a key factor in maintaining close cooperation between Australia and the South China region. This not only reflects the dynamism of Guangdong’s economy, but also provides important opportunities for APEC member economies to carry out all-round cooperation in areas such as climate change, energy transition, and services trade.

As an Australian diplomat working and living in Guangdong, Kendall has his own insights into Guangdong’s economic and trade development and industrial growth. He said, “Looking at the volume of Australia–China merchandise trade, Guangdong alone accounts for 11%, which is a very significant share. Guangdong plays an pioneering role in building China’s trade and economic ties with the world. Its manufacturing sector is shifting from traditional to advanced, and from mid- to high-end.”

Kendall said that the rapid development of the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area in fields such as robotics, artificial intelligence, and electric vehicles is attracting an increasing number of Australian companies to look for room for cooperation.

Over the past year, despite the continuing intensification of global turbulence and change, China–Australia relations have still shown a positive momentum of “steady progress.” Economic and trade cooperation has also improved in both quality and efficiency. Bilateral trade volume has exceeded 300 billion Australian dollars. Kendall believes that in the future, China–Australia economic and trade cooperation will see more structural opportunities.

High regard for R&D is an important “China experience”

《21st Century》: China’s “14th Five-Year” plan outlines mention “science and technology,” “innovation,” and “new productive forces” multiple times. In your view, what kind of economic transformation has China experienced in recent years? What experiences does China have that are worth sharing in terms of high-quality development?

Kendall: Recently, Premier Li Qiang released a series of documents in Beijing that clearly set out a roadmap for China’s economic development, with innovation and technological progress placed in a prominent position. We have also noticed that at both the national level and the provincial level, innovation, R&D, and technological progress have been listed as priority development directions.

In Guangdong, we can clearly see the changes brought about by these strategies. The trend of shifting from traditional manufacturing to advanced manufacturing and high-end manufacturing is very obvious. The rapid development in areas such as robotics, artificial intelligence, automation technology, low-altitude aircraft, and electric vehicles is precisely a concrete reflection of this transformation.

It can be said that the grand blueprint of the “14th Five-Year” plan is gradually being implemented. One important “China experience,” in my view, is China’s high level of emphasis on R&D. China’s continued investment in R&D has strongly promoted deep integration between policy incentives and industrial development, enabling scientific and technological achievements to be accelerated into productive forces.

High-quality development focuses on people’s well-being and the economy

《21st Century》: China is steadily promoting high-quality economic development. In your view, which industries can be provided with more development opportunities?

Kendall: The Chinese government frequently mentions “high-quality development.” My understanding is that its core is to promote the transformation and upgrading of traditional technologies and traditional manufacturing industries across the country, in order to enhance China’s innovation capability and economic competitiveness.

This process is indeed driven by innovation and technology. But it is worth noting that a key point raised by China’s policymakers is that its meaning involves both quantity and quality—this reflects a shift in ways of thinking. The Chinese government is guiding producers to focus more on how to develop high-end manufacturing, rather than simply pursuing growth in the number of finished products.

On the other hand, I also believe that high-quality development is closely connected to the concept of social fairness. In the process of China’s rapid economic transformation, to ensure that the fruits of transformation are reflected at the social level, the Chinese government has also worked to support the continuous improvement of people’s living standards.

About 11% of China–Australia trade is with Guangdong

《21st Century》: In 2025, the China–Australia free trade agreement will mark its 10th anniversary, and both sides have achieved remarkable results from their cooperation. According to data from the Chinese side, in 2024, the value of China–Australia bilateral goods import and export reached 211.27 billion USD, up 85.6% from 2015. How do you view the characteristics of China–Australia economic and trade development? At the new starting point of the decade-long implementation of the China–Australia free trade agreement, what kinds of structural changes will China–Australia economic and trade relations see?

Kendall: Australia–China trade relations are large in scale and highly significant. Data show that bilateral trade volume exceeds 300 billion Australian dollars, accounting for 24% of Australia’s total trade with the rest of the world. Of this, 200 billion Australian dollars comes from exports to China.

The China–Australia Free Trade Agreement has played an important role in improving Australian companies’ access to the Chinese market. Currently, trade still mainly centers on natural resources and raw materials, including iron ore, liquefied natural gas, and coal. In the future, we have an opportunity to diversify trade types and further expand the scale, and the free trade agreement provides an important platform for this.

The Australian Consulate General in Guangzhou is paying attention to how to promote trade outcomes among enterprises in Guangdong and Australia—especially relevant agricultural products such as beef, wine, barley, and wool—which are widely popular in the Chinese market. Another structural change is the expansion of services trade, in which Guangdong plays an important role: it is not only a major source province for Australian tourism, but also an important origin of educational services. Guangdong is also the No. 1 source province for Chinese students going to Australia.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the signing of the China–Australia Free Trade Agreement. The agreement includes review mechanisms that allow it to be assessed. We are collecting feedback and suggestions from Australian companies to further improve the agreement.

《21st Century》: Last year, when Australian Prime Minister Albanese visited China, he emphasized new opportunities for cooperation between the two countries, including addressing climate change, trade, tourism, and cultural exchanges. What is your view on the cooperation opportunities in these areas?

Kendall: Last year’s itinerary for the Australian Prime Minister covered Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu, with fruitful outcomes.

In the field of climate change, the two sides reached important cooperation, especially on decarbonizing steel production. Considering that China is Australia’s main importer of iron ore, if we want to maintain this supply relationship, exploring emissions-reduction processes together is crucial—steelmaking emissions account for about 7% to 8% of the global total. Since the Prime Minister’s visit to China last year, the two sides have established mechanisms to promote matchmaking between Chinese and Australian companies, and the relevant emissions-reduction cooperation is now being implemented.

Regarding economic cooperation, China–Australia trade relations are close, and Guangdong is even more critical. At present, about 11% of Australian goods trade is with Guangdong, which is a very significant share.

In tourism and people-to-people and cultural exchanges, two-way exchanges between China and Australia are active. During peak seasons, South China Airlines operates 74 Australia-bound flights per week. For the Sydney route, there are four flights per day. This provides important support for bilateral tourism and people-to-people exchange as well as educational cooperation. In the cultural sphere, the China–Australia Foundation for Friendship of States Relations also recently visited Guangdong to learn on the ground about local interest in Australian cultural products.

《21st Century》: Data show that in 2025, Guangdong’s imports and exports with other APEC member economies totaled 6.16 trillion yuan, up 3.3% year on year. Among them, exports such as integrated circuits, drones, and the “new three” exports saw relatively fast growth. How do you view Guangdong’s bilateral trade performance with other APEC member economies? Which Guangdong products stand out more in trade between Guangdong and Australia?

Kendall: First, I want to emphasize the importance of Guangdong. In China’s trade with countries and regions around the world, Guangdong has always played a key role.

(Modern and contemporary) China’s foreign trade was first opened via Guangzhou’s “Thirteen Hongs.” Therefore, when discussing contemporary China’s trade, we must acknowledge Guangdong’s pioneering role in establishing China’s trade and economic connections with the world.

In terms of bilateral trade, Australia imports large quantities from Guangdong of telecommunications equipment, computing equipment, furniture, and electric vehicles, among others. This is precisely the key reason why we maintain close cooperation with the South China region.

Taking electric vehicles as an example: they are growing rapidly in the Australian market, and Guangdong’s electric vehicle manufacturers are playing an important role. This will provide important opportunities for us to further deepen bilateral trade relations, and it is also closely related to the emissions-reduction and climate-change topics discussed earlier.

《21st Century》: How do you look ahead to the structure of China–Australia bilateral trade involving Guangdong?

Kendall: As mentioned earlier, Guangdong accounts for 11% of Australia’s total merchandise trade with China. This means Guangdong plays a role in China–Australia bilateral relations that is far more important than what its economic size alone would suggest. Australia’s key export commodities are mainly iron ore, liquefied natural gas, and coal. Among these, large volumes of iron ore are shipped to Zhanjiang Port; coal enters Guangzhou Nansha Port; and liquefied natural gas reaches Shenzhen Dapeng Bay. These three major commodity routes into Guangdong are one of the key reasons why 11% of the total China–Australia trade value is concentrated there.

It is also worth noting that these ports in Guangdong are among the closest ports to Australia. In particular, Western Australia has abundant iron ore and liquefied natural gas resources, and Guangdong’s ports have natural geographical advantages, which creates favorable conditions for both sides to expand cooperation.

In addition, education services exports and the tourism industry are also important components of bilateral trade. After the pandemic, people-to-people interactions and educational exchanges are gradually recovering to the high levels seen earlier.

Each city in the Greater Bay Area has its own distinct features

《21st Century》: Which cities in Guangdong have you visited, and what have you gained from them? What do you think of the business environment in Guangdong?

Kendall: I have visited many cities in Guangdong. The longer I stayed here, the more I could appreciate the significant differences among the various places. First, among the cities I visited, I focused on those that play an important role in bilateral goods trade, such as Zhanjiang, Shenzhen Dapeng New Area, and Guangzhou Nansha District.

Second, to better understand how Guangdong achieves economic transformation and moves toward advanced manufacturing, I toured Shenzhen, Dongguan, and Foshan. Foshan is also an important source of home furniture imported by Australia.

Finally, another important purpose of my visits around Guangdong was to explore the cities where Chinese immigrants from Guangdong lived before coming to Australia in the 19th century. I was fortunate to learn about the connections among Kaiping, Zhongshan, and Taishan, and the important roles played by migrants from these places in their development history in Australia.

Deep historical roots boost bilateral trade

《21st Century》: Why did the Australian Consulate General in Guangzhou organize an exhibition titled “Shared Roots: Stories of Australians of Chinese Heritage from Guangdong”? Based on these deep historical roots, how do you view the future development of economic relations between Guangdong and Australia?

Kendall: After taking up my post in Guangdong, I learned about the long history of Guangdong people migrating to Australia. I believe this history has not yet been fully showcased. Although the Consulate General has previously carried out related research, I hope that through the Consulate’s exhibition, this history of exchange can be recorded more comprehensively, while also highlighting the contributions made by Chinese people in the 19th century to Australia’s economy and society.

To this end, we initiated background research and collaborated with scholars in Melbourne and local Chinese history museums, and ultimately produced the exhibition you see today. The exhibition presents in a true and vivid way the journey of Guangdong migrants to Australia from 1818 to the present, telling how Guangdong people—and later some Chinese people from parts of Northern China—contributed to the development of Australia.

I believe that the history of these people-to-people interactions, and the role played by Chinese-Australians in Australia, provides a solid foundation for our economic ties today. At present, more than 1.4 million Australians have Chinese ancestry, many of whom come from Guangdong, out of Australia’s total population of about 27 million—this is a very significant share. Therefore, we should fully leverage the advantages of the Australia–Chinese diaspora bond and actively promote relations and trade between the two countries.

《21st Century》: Have you seen some Australian companies investing in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area? What are your expectations for the prospects of investment cooperation between Australia and the Greater Bay Area?

Kendall: As the saying goes, investment follows trade. Stable trade relations are a good foundation for carrying out investment cooperation.

China has long been an important source of investment for Australia. Historically, Australia’s development has depended on foreign investment for a long time—at first mainly from the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan; nowadays, China is playing an important role in driving Australia’s economic development.

Investment includes both investment in China and investment in Australia. Today, many companies are seeking opportunities for two-way investment, and we are willing to have in-depth exchanges with Chinese friends and partners about various investment opportunities.

Planning: Zhao Haijian

Supervision: Li Yanxia

Overall coordination: He Jia

Shooting: Zhang Qiliang

Design: Li Jili

Produced by: SFC International Communication Center

(Intern Chen Yuhan also contributed to this article.)