[2] However, Australian researcher Lawrence Hargrave argued that Spain had already established a colony in Botany Bay in the 16th century, a time when expeditions were organised to find Terra Australis.

[3] Later, French historian Roger Hervé claimed that the Spanish caravel San Lesmes was diverted to New Zealand and Tasmania, until it went up the Australian eastern coast and was captured by the Portuguese near what is now Cape York.

Kane opted for ‘exploring new opportunities in the distribution, health, agri-food, automotive and pharmaceutical sectors.’ Finally, he announced that ‘the most important Australian trade delegation in years’ will visit Spain in July and will be led by a minister from his Government.

[11] The director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of North America, Asia and the Pacific, Fidel Sendagorta, stressed that both countries also share values, which will facilitate the work in the UN Human Rights Council for the period 2018-2020.

[13] Australian companies are increasingly interested in Spain and have a growing number of investments in the country, especially in the field of financial services, software development and mining.

[17] Likewise, the Spanish company Talgo is studying taking its trains to Australia to communicate and reduce journey times between the cities of Adelaide, Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney.

[1] Australian merchandise exports to Spain were valued at $697 million, and included coal, other ores and concentrates, fruit and nuts, and electronic integrated circuits.

Spanish merchandise exports to Australia were valued at $2 billion, with the biggest import items being passenger motor vehicles, medicaments (including veterinary), fixed vegetable oils and fats, and rubber tyres, treads and tubes.