Ewen Jones (Herbert, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Resources, Energy and Northern Australia. Will the minister update the House on how the government's recent free trade agreements will benefit the Australian resources and energy sector, especially around Northern Queensland?

Ed Husic (Chifley, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary to the Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Come on, Domingo!

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Chifley has been warned, already.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Minister for Resources, Energy and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Herbert for his question and congratulate him on a great win, for Northern Australia, with the North Queensland Cowboys. I also congratulate him on the hard work that he does for the people of his electorate and I look forward to visiting next week.

Australia's resources and energy sector comprises nearly 10 per cent of our economy, employs around 500,000 people and represents nearly 60 per cent of our goods exports. Australia is a global powerhouse in energy and resources. In fact, we will soon be the No. 1 exporter of LNG in the world. We are the No. 1 exporter of iron ore in the world and we are the second-largest exporter of coal in the world. We are always looking for new markets or to cut tariffs into existing markets. That is why the fantastic work by the member for Goldstein has been so important in this free trade area.

Take, for example, our agreement with Japan. All tariffs on energy and resources products will be eliminated over the next 10 years, including an 11.7 per cent tariff on unwrought nickel and a 3.2 per cent tariff on coke and coal. With Korea, already our third-largest market for LNG, the three per cent tariff on LNG will be eliminated. Last week we saw the first shipment from Santos's LNG project in Gladstone to Korea. With the 12 countries in the TPP, with whom we already export $47 billion worth of resources and energy, we will see the elimination of all tariffs on LNG and refined petroleum to Vietnam, an elimination of iron ore, copper and nickel tariffs to Peru and, in Australia, the significant $90 billion world-leading mining equipment and technology-services sector will benefit from duty-free access to TPP countries.

The Turnbull government is absolutely committed to free trade and open markets. That is why we have struck these free trade deals with Korea, with Japan, with China and with the TPP. This is good news not only for workers in areas like Kalgoorlie or Gladstone or Karratha it is good news for people in the cities as well, because it earns billions of dollars of important export income for Australia.