The Deepening China Brazil Economic Relationship

We document key features of the deepening economic relationship between Brazil and China. This is evident from sharply increased bilateral trade and foreign direct investment flows and also from enhanced cohesion of negotiating positions in international fora. Data presented show bilateral trade between Brazil and China surging after 2001 and China is now Brazil’s largest export market while Brazil’s export share to the US has halved. The number of bilateral cooperation agreements between the two countries has also significantly increased in recent years. Projections of future trade flows using current growth rates suggest that China will become the dominant trade partner for Brazil surprisingly soon.