New FTA Portal empowering exporters

Small and medium enterprises looking to export are the big winners from a new Coalition Government initiative to give them quick and easy access to trade information.

Today I am launching the new FTA Portal that will help Australia's SMEs take full advantage of Australia's free trade agreements with the three north Asian powerhouse economies of China, Japan and South Korea.

The opportunities for Australia's SMEs have never been better. Many businesses are looking to export but are uncertain about how to go about it and whether they are price competitive.

The new FTA Portal seeks to answer those questions. It provides free and accurate information on tariffs under the FTAs so small and medium businesses can easily work out how price competitive they will be.

The Portal also has Australian and international trade data and an innovative step-by-step system to help businesses assess whether their product is likely to meet the requirements of the agreements.

So whether you're a seafood exporter in WA, a cherry exporter in Tasmania or an advanced manufacturing exporter in Victoria, the FTA Portal displays the right information for the right product through a quick and easy search.

The new FTA Portal is just one of the ways the Coalition is helping SMEs – from primary producers through to advanced manufacturers – take full advantage of the significant competitive benefits offered by the FTAs in order to create jobs and economic growth.

The new FTA Portal also aims to harness the innovation of the private sector, by making the information freely available to app developers so clever, tailored apps can be developed that provide even more helpful information to the SME sector.

The FTA Portal is: https://ftaportal.dfat.gov.au/