Australia yesterday cautiously welcomed the US President Donald Trump's decision to lift tariffs on beef, but at the same time urged the United States to exempt Australian goods from all tariffs. Trump lifted tariffs on more than 200 food products, including beef, amid consumer concerns about rising grocery prices in the US. In 2024, Australia became the largest exporter of red meat to the US, offering lower prices and leaner meat varieties that the US lacks. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong stated: "We welcome the removal of these tariffs; it's good for Australian beef producers." However, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his Labor government would continue to "call for reciprocal tariffs to be zero." Trump describes some of the tariffs he has imposed on goods shipped to the US as "reciprocal," based on the US trade deficit in goods with a particular country. Albanese stated in a television interview from Melbourne: "We are deeply committed and will continue to call for tariffs to be zero." The Australian Foreign Minister did not specify whether the center-left Albanese government now expects Trump to reverse his plan to impose 25% tariffs on Australian steel and aluminum imports. She stated: "We will continue to defend our position." This past April, Trump pointed to a trade imbalance in beef with Australia after its beef exports to the US surged to A$4 billion ($2.64 billion) last year amid a decline in US beef production. Since 1990, Australia has exported between 150,000 and 400,000 tons of this product to the US annually, where it is highly popular in fast-food restaurants.
