Increased ‘belt and road’ momentum an opportunity for Australian businesses

The opportunity for Australian business is not Australia’s direct involvement in BRI. It is whether, during a period of heightened trade volatility, Australia can position itself as a reliable commercial partner and a stable jurisdiction for supply chains that feed sectors China is actively investing in overseas, including EV batteries, grid buildouts and data centres.

Recently released statistics from the Ministry of Commerce of China (MOFCOM), covering the 2025 calendar year, revealed a re acceleration in both the scale and scope of China’s overseas economic engagement following a period of slower and more cautious BRI investment, alongside China’s current focus on resilience, diversification and delivery certainty.

The engagement statistics recorded US$128.4 billion in construction contracts and about US$85.2 billion in investment across BRI countries. Energy-related investment reached US$93.9 billion, the highest level recorded since the inception of the BRI in 2013.

China’s outbound commercial expansion rarely occurs in a policy vacuum. Legislative and regulatory frameworks are often put in place before expansion becomes visible. Geopolitical uncertainty and trade pressures in key markets have reinforced a policy shift toward trade diversification, supply chain resilience, and the export of ‘capacity’ through capital, technology, and contracting capability alongside goods.

This is reflected in formal rules and laws, such as the revised Foreign Trade Law, which takes effect on 1 March. The updated legislative language signals a clear intent to build China into a ‘strong trading nation’ by widening market access and embedding measures for new forms and models of crossborder trade such as ecommerce, stronger trade related intellectual property protection, and the development of digital and green trade frameworks.

Alongside the increase of cross-border engagement and activities, China has also enacted a new Commercial Mediation Regulation, effective from 1 May 2026, adding an important ‘rules layer’ for crossborder trade. It includes a legislative framework for commercial mediation and arbitration mechanisms in disputes arising in trade, investment, finance, transportation, construction and intellectual property.

As policy settings shape the direction of China’s outbound activity, the practical question for Australian businesses is whether they can tap into that momentum. By paying close attention to policy signals and the sectors they prioritise, businesses can position themselves as credible partners in China’s ‘resilience agenda’, particularly regarding source diversification and supply chain resilience.

Recent BRI engagement data points to a record rise in metals and mining activity, including a notable increase in copper investment linked to the physical infrastructure that sits behind artificial intelligence and data centre growth. This illustrates a broader shift where critical minerals are increasingly treated as strategically important for downstream industry and infrastructure, such as data centres and EV batteries, rather than as standalone commodities.

As a result, Australia’s critical minerals abundance positions local miners and developers to be part of the BRI linked supply chain, by providing more risk-managed, transparent and financeable supply arrangements, such as long-term offtake agreements and selective downstream processing partnerships, supported by traceability that helps involved parties and financiers manage supply chain and environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks.

Agriculture is another area where Australia is well placed to strengthen supply chain resilience. Australia’s advantage is not only its agricultural output, but also its ability to bundle exports with supporting systems, including cold chain capability, processing capacity, logistics expertise and agri-tech solutions, allowing Australia to compete globally on both reliability and volume.

As the ‘digital silk road’ becomes an increasingly prominent part of the BRI, attention is moving from digital as an abstract concept to the underlying physical infrastructure that makes it work, including subsea cables, landing stations and data centres as the core nodes of cross border connectivity.

For Australian businesses, participation might look like supplying the inputs and capability that these projects depend on, such as critical minerals and specialist engineering; or providing advisory support that strengthens cybersecurity, data governance and operational resilience for critical digital infrastructure. In these areas, risk allocation and compliance with local laws are becoming as important as build cost and speed.

Co-written by Ceres Zhou of Pinsent Masons.