Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi recently announced that China will lift a two-decade long ban on Spanish beef, while calling for China and Spain to work together to provide a "fair, just and non-discriminatory" business environment.

An important source of the China-Australia trade tensions in recent years was Chinese restrictions on Australian beef exports. As China and Australia continue to address these trade tensions, China has now lifted some of its restrictions on Australian meat exporters.

Over the first half of September, China's customs agency made several announcements that will impact trade in beef and dairy products.

Chinese customs officials met with their Belgian counterparts last month and reached a number of agreements that will pave the way for more Belgian food exports. This came after China lifted a decade-long import ban on Belgian beef due to mad cow disease.

Chinese customs officials visited Poland last week and set the foundation to allow the resumption of imports of Polish beef, as well as market access for Polish berries and pet food.

On June 15, China's customs agency lifted decade-long bans on Polish and Belgian beef. The impact of the announcement on trade in these products remains an open question.

A planned trip by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to China was postponed indefinitely due to the president's illness. Nonetheless, it did not stop a series of agreements on bilateral cooperation from being announced in recent weeks. These new agreements cover a number of areas, including