By Leonardo Gottems, Reporter for AgroPages
Dr. Zhang Lubiao, Director-General of the Ministry of Agriculture of China, made a speech on the topic of "Overview and Prospects in Trade in Agricultural Products between China and Brazil," at the 12th Brazil AgrochemShow which held on Tuesday, 6th August, in the city of Sao Paulo.
According to Dr. Zhang, Chinese imports are growing significantly, at a faster pace than exports, because the Chinese government has mobilized its financial resources and stimulated foreign purchases.
Dr. Zhang also pointed out that China's doors are open to Brazil, which already accounts for 24.1% of agricultural imports to China, equivalent to US$33 billion a year. Brazil is the main agricultural exporter to China, ahead of countries such as the United States, which account for 11.8% of agricultural imports, and Australia with 7.6%, he added.
“Why do we import so many products? Because we have Brazil! It is China's largest source of agricultural partnerships and trade,” stressed Dr. Zhang, noting that the trade between the two countries has grow rapidly, and in 2018, it broke the record in terms of number of negotiations.
The best-selling Brazilian products exported to China is soybean, accounting for 87.3% of their total agricultural trade, which also includes meat, sugar cane, cotton and other commodities. However, Dr. Zhang explained that he sees potential to further grow in these businesses, as well as opportunities for diversification.
“We want to diversify our suppliers, but Brazil will continue to be our main trading partner. We support multilateralism and reject protectionism,” he affirmed at the end of his talk, which was well received and applauded.
As the official media partner of 12th Brazil AgrochemShow, AgroPages attended the event and distributed its latest magazine, titled, “
2019 Latin America Focus.” Readers are welcome to download the digital magazine.
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