AUSTRALIA-CHINA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT: CAUSAL EMPIRICS AND POLITICAL ECONOMY

The launch of negotiations for an Australia‐China free trade agreement (ACFTA) started on 18 April 2005, following completion of the joint feasibility study that showed substantial economic and trade benefits for the two countries. The paper reassesses these benefits by means of an empirical analysis with a view to providing improved inputs for informed debate on the benefits and costs of an ACFTA from the perspective of Australia and China. The implications of the findings for policy uses are also discussed.