AFR readers call for less dependence on China Share The economy and our relationship with China are the two most pressing issues facing Australia in 2021 amid continued tensions over tariffs imposed by Beijing on products such as barley, meat and wine, according to readers of The Australian Financial Review. Thirty-one per cent of respondents in the latest reader poll said the economy was the most urgent issue facing the country and government, followed by the relationship with China (28 per cent), the pandemic (21 per cent) and the environment (17 per cent). One reader worried that China was using Australia as an example to the rest of the world.