Australia is creating a two-tier investment structure for the foreign purchase of Australian farmland and agribusinesses with the U.S. and New Zealand exempt from the lower thresholds being imposed upon South Korea in the new trade agreement with that country. Under the new agreement with South Korea Australia has lowered the threshold for mandatory approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) for farmland purchases from $53 million to $15 million and for the purchase of agribusinesses from $248 million to $53 million. Trade and Investment Minister Andrew Robb has stated that these new thresholds will be taken to free trade negotiations with China and Japan, however the U.S. and New Zealand will be exempt from the lower thresholds. The inclusion of the lowered thresholds in upcoming free trade agreements comes as a governmental response to concerns about rising foreign investment in Australian land and agriculture.
To receive relevant news stories with summaries provided by GAI Research & Insight, subscribe to Global AgDevelopments, our free bi-weekly enhanced eNews service