Research is the basis on which UTS:ACRI seeks to inform Australia’s engagement with the PRC. By uncovering facts and deepening understanding though undertaking and supporting evidence-based analysis, UTS:ACRI research serves to promote sound public and private sector decision-making, as well as raising the level of Australia-China relations literacy amongst the general public.
Traditional academic output such as scholarly journal articles and conference papers are complemented by a flow of research reports, polls, fact sheets, briefs and commentary pieces that explore contemporary developments.
Reports
By AustCham China, with support form the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney and the Australia China Business Council
By James Laurenceson, Elena Collinson, Wanning Sun, Marina Zhang and Xunpeng Shi
Since taking office in 2022, the Albanese government has emphasised ‘stabilising’ relations with the PRC.
Journal articles and books
By James Laurenceson
By James Laurenceson and Xi Chen
By Mark Beeson
Polling
By Elena Collinson and Paul F. Burke
Now in its fourth year, the UTS:ACRI/BIDA Poll continues to provide policymakers and the public with a set of comprehensive insights into how Australians approach what is unquestionably Australia’s toughest foreign policy challenge in generations, the Australia-China relationship.
Now in its third year, the UTS:ACRI/BIDA Poll 2023 by the Australia-China Relations Institute and the Centre for Business Intelligence & Data Analytics at UTS takes the Australian public’s pulse on prominent aspects of, and recent events pertinent to, the Australia-China relationship.
Now in its second year, the UTS:ACRI/BIDA Poll 2022 by the Australia-China Relations Institute and the Centre for Business Intelligence & Data Analytics at UTS examines how views have changed since the inaugural 2021 poll and lays out divisions in opinion within four demographic areas.
Analyses
With the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement now a decade in operation, this UTS:ACRI Analysis provides an Australian assessment of core outcomes against a backdrop of claims by advocates and critics of the deal.
This analysis overviews the relationship between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 2024 before looking ahead to 2025 and the critical issues the two nations will likely need to navigate.
This analysis highlights some key commonalities between Chinese-Australians and Chinese-Americans in their reactions to their domestic English-language media’s coverage of the PRC, bilateral relations with PRC, as well as to coverage about ethnic Chinese communities.
Briefs and working papers
On May 20 2025, the National Party formally withdrew from its longstanding partnership with the Liberal Party, citing policy differences and, reportedly, frustration over restrictions on shadow cabinet members crossing the floor.
On May 13 2025, Sussan Ley was elected leader of the Liberal Party, narrowly defeating her opponent, Angus Taylor, 29 votes to 25. In doing so, she became the first woman to lead the Liberal Party. Yet the tight margin also exposed enduring factional and ideological tensions within the party.
Kamala Harris formally accepted the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination on August 22 2024, the final day of the Democratic National Convention. In her acceptance speech, she stated that as president she would ensure that ‘America, not China, wins the competition for the 21st century’.
Commentary
By Elena Collinson
By Wanning Sun
By Elena Collinson
Factsheets
According to the UTS:ACRI/BIDA Poll 2023, 73 percent of Australians take the view that ‘Foreign buyers from China drive up Australian housing prices’, while 68 percent say that ‘Chinese investors have negatively affected the rental market for residential real estate in Australia’.
While a change of government in Australia marked the beginning of a political thaw between Canberra and Beijing, the series of formal and informal trade bans put in place by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) against Australian exports over 2020-2021 remained firmly in place in 2022.
The relationship between Australia and Taiwan has recently become closer in many domains including trade, investment and people-to-people links. This closening of ties has occurred over a period in which Australia’s relationship with the PRC has grown increasingly strained.