Council of Councils
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Trade: As prices eased in anticipation of resumed U.S. sales following a U.S.-China trade truce, Chinese soy importers stepped up purchases of Brazilian soybeans in early November. South American soy prices fell below U.S. prices, a reversal of the earlier price trend in October.
China’s state trader COFCO also announced the purchase of nearly twenty million tons of Brazilian soybeans worth over $10 billion as purchases of American soybeans stalled despite the trade truce.
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Toward the end of November, China halted imports from five Brazilian soybean exporters over contamination concerns due to mixed cargo with pesticide-treated wheat.
The Chinese International Import Expo was held in early November in Shanghai, China, securing imports of many Latin American products and establishing deeper China-Latin America trade ties.
Ecuadorian shrimp prices to China dipped in reaction to slower Chinese demand in November.
Diplomacy: The Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang met with Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi in a visit to the country in early November and reaffirmed China’s commitment to its relationship with Uruguay. Ding and Orsi signed documents on economic, technological, and customs cooperation between the two countries.
Ding then traveled to Belém, Brazil, where COP30 was being held. He met with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and called for cooperation to oppose “unilateralism, protectionism, and hegemonism.”
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The eighteenth China-Latin America Business Summit was held in Zhengzhou, China, hosted by the Chinese government and the government of Henan province. The event focused on innovation and intelligence, and featured envoys from nearly thirty countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Despite U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s October comments that Argentinian President Javier Milei was committed to “getting China out” of Argentina, Andrés Lozano, the director of operations of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), maintained that the bank does not predict big changes to its operations in the country. Argentina is the ICBC’s biggest overseas operation.
At COP30, China sought a leadership role on climate. China’s pavilion occupied prime space next to Brazil’s, and Chinese company BYD introduced new biofuel-compatible plug-in electric vehicles manufactured in the Brazilian state of Bahia.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro called for a high-level security meeting with the United States, China, and Latin American partners over U.S. military buildup near the coast of Venezuela.
Petro postponed a planned December trip to China after a group of right-wing Colombian lawmakers visited Taiwan. The Colombian Foreign Ministry stated that Colombia defends the One China policy.
At the fourteenth China–Latin America High-Level Academic Forum in late November, Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Latin American Affairs Qiu Xiaoqi emphasized China’s commitment to deepening green-development cooperation with Latin American and Caribbean countries.
U.S.-China Tensions: As the United States increased its naval presence in the Caribbean, China deployed a naval hospital ship to Nicaragua. The ship is also expected to provide medical services in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Peru.
China denounced the United States’ imposition of visa restrictions on Central American nationals linked to the Chinese government and their family members.
Tariffs: Mexico has delayed approval of a steep rise in tariffs on Chinese imports until December, as mounting opposition from Mexico’s private sector has stalled congressional debate. The Mexican manufacturing sector is concerned about a potential increase in input costs. China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jiang reiterated China’s opposition to the tariff plan, which it sees as the result of “coercion” by the U.S. government.