Bottles of Australian wine are seen at a store selling imported wine in Beijing, China November 27, 2020. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSYDNEY, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Australia's wine industry faces severe oversupply problems that will need years to resolve, experts say, pointing to Chinese tariffs, high production and export bottlenecks during the COVID-19 pandemic. The recent removal of tariffs on Australian barley has fed hopes for an early easing of the five-year tariffs China imposed on Australian wine in 2021. Australian wine exports declined a tenth in value to A$1.87 billion and 1% in volume to 621 million litres in the year ended June, Wine Australia’s Export Report said in July. "All we can say is next time you go to buy a bottle of wine, make sure it's Australian," McLean said.

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Persons: Florence, Pia Piggott, Lee McLean, McLean, Piggott, Praveen Menon, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Rabobank, China, Labor, Wine Estates, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Australia, Britain, Europe, United States, Asia