China lifts ban on five Australian beef exporters

Sydney — China has lifted bans on imports from five major Australian beef processing facilities, the Australian government said on Thursday, in the latest sign of improving relations between the two nations. Beijing has now removed restrictions from eight abattoirs but two remain subject to import bans, the government said. China imposed the bans between 2020 and 2022, around the same time it barred imports of a swathe of commodities including coal, timber and wine from Australia after Canberra called for an independent investigation into the origin of COVID-19. The bans applied to certain abattoirs but did not affect others,…