A group of journalists from China were brought to Australia by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Austrade which included a tour of 3 Oceans winery.
The tour provided the journalists insight into some of the success stories of Chinese investments in Australia outside the resource industry.
The winery is owned by 3 Oceans Capital, an investment and finance company, which manages wealth across various industries for families who wish to establish themselves in Australia.
An Austrade spokesperson said the purpose of the media visit was to inform the Chinese community about Chinese investment in Australia.
The spokesperson said many people did not know what Chinese companies were doing in Australia or how well they were doing or how well they fitted into the Australian culture.
The spokesperson said it would give the Chinese community a better understanding of how closely the two countries worked together.
“We believe trade is the first stage, where we have a trade and investment relationship - once we get to the investment – our relationship is really close and trust has increased to a certain level,” the spokesperson said.
“Investment is a really good signal of the bilateral relationship, it shows maturity and how sophisticated the relationship can be.
“That is why DFAT so kindly invited the group to come especially to WA, there is already lots of knowledge about Sydney and Melbourne.
“In regional cities, Chinese companies also have lots of activities and it is also an area we want to promote for more Chinese tourists, students and interests.
“We hope the Chinese business community will understand a bit more about Australia.
“3 Oceans is a good story to share, to see how they adapted to the Australian style of management, increased employment and their reputation.”
Journalist Siqi said it had been an amazing experience to come to Australia and learn about different Chinese companies which were operating here.
“I am not big into company news, but we have been on a lot of site visits and talked to management and now I have a bigger picture I can write about what it is like for Chinese investment here,” she said.
“The best part was I got the chance to talk to the trade minister, officials from DFAT and the treasury so I got an explanation about the policies.”
Journalist Eric said it was the first time he had visited Australia and there was a big difference from his home town in Beijing.
“There are fewer people here and it is much smaller than China,” he said.
“Because we are all media, we came here mainly for talks on investment, in China there are too many negative reports on China and Australia relations, but the feeling here is different from the reports.
“The Chinese companies work very well here, there is a big difference in my personal opinion.”
