Lobster deal not enough as more China trade championed

Australia will not rest on its laurels now it has an "iron-clad guarantee" to get Australian lobster back on Chinese restaurant plates, the trade minister says.

In a major win for Labor ahead of the 2025 federal election, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chinese Premier Li Qiang reached a deal this week to overturn the Chinese import ban on rock lobster exports, worth $700 million.

Trade Minister Don Farrell on Saturday thanked West Australian lobster fishers for their patience as Labor worked to stabilise the China relationship, fractured during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"There are plenty of times in the past few years when you could have given up hope," he told fishers in Fremantle.

While painting the lobster episode as a cautionary tale for any exporter reliant on one market, Mr Farrell sees even more opportunity to leverage Australia's clean and green image with Chinese consumers.

The former retail union official will travel with several local businesses to Shanghai for a large trade festival in coming weeks.

"If you go into any Chinese supermarket, you'll see lots and lots of Australian goods on the shelves," Mr Farrell said.

"But we shouldn't rest on our laurels.

"Our reputation in China for clean and green, particularly agricultural products, is very strong and we should build upon that."

Trade with China reached $327 billion in 2023, but that did not mean it could not top $400 billion this year, the minister said.

"At the same time, we can also diversify," he said.

Beijing slapped sanctions on $20 billion worth of Australian products during heightened tensions in 2020, after the previous Morrison government called for an inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic.

Barley, beef, wine and lobster were all affected by the duties, with the latter two industries crippled by the loss of the Chinese market.

Rock lobster exports were worth more than $700 million and the loss of trade impacted more than 3000 Australians employed in the industry, mostly in WA.

Since Labor took office in 2022, the government has secured the gradual removal of almost all the bans.

Only two beef producers out of an original group of 10 meat facilities remain suspended, with continuing work under way to have these lifted.

Following the removal of the duties on eight establishments, Australia has exported $1.6 billion worth of beef to China.

Backing in the government's foreign policy approach, Mr Albanese said the win was achieved "through calm, careful diplomacy".

In September, the government struck a free-trade deal with the United Arab Emirates as it seeks to open up new markets for Australian exporters.