Asia continues to provide new export opportunities for Australian SMEs

Despite ongoing economic turbulence, Australian SMEs have remained resilient, in no small part thanks to exports into Asia. With up to 6% growth from the previous year for Australian exports to some Asian countries, SMEs have a range of international opportunities at their fingertips.

Many Australian businesses have already placed their confidence in emerging Asian markets. According to the 2016 DHL Export Barometer, 60% of Australian exporters expect orders from China to increase in 2017 despite its economic slowdown. Other markets inspiring Aussie export confidence include South East Asia (55% expecting order growth), Japan (52%), South Asia (51%), Indonesia (48%), South Korea (47%) and Hong Kong (46%).

That positivity also extends to a topic that can be relatively unpopular: free trade agreements. However major FTAs command significant and growing support from Australian enterprises: 67% of exporters say the China-Australia FTA (ChAFTA) has had a positive impact on their businesses, 9% more than last year.

“Australia’s perception of trade with China is strengthening – both in terms of predicted future sales and also the benefits of ChAFTA,” says Tim Harcourt, J.W. Nevile Fellow in Economics at the University of New South Wales and former chief economist at the Australian Trade Commission.

It’s not just China that offers SMEs big opportunities. New Asian FTAs with Japan and South Korea are driving exporters to establish local presences selling to these countries’ expanding middle classes. And with the number of FTAs already signed in developed and emerging Asian markets, current exporting conditions have never been more accommodating.