China and Brazil elevated their bilateral ties in November 2024, establishing “a community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet.” This marked the third such elevation since establishing diplomatic ties in 1974, following their strategic partnership in 1993 and comprehensive strategic partnership in 2012.

The new partnership signifies a stronger unity between the two nations in contributing to “a community with a shared future for mankind,” a goal China proposed in 2013. At the same time, the two countries will redouble their efforts to enhance political and economic cooperation while promoting cultural exchanges to deepen mutual understanding.

The world today is undergoing major changes unseen in a century. Since Trump’s return to the presidency, U.S. foreign policy has shown a marked shift toward unilateralism and protectionism. To counter these trends, China, Brazil and other developing nations must build stronger political consensus while deepening their economic cooperation.

Brazil needs investment in its infrastructure, manufacturing and agricultural sectors, which China can provide. Chinese investment in Brazil has reached $70 billion, and this win-win cooperation has proven fruitful. The Belo Monte Hydropower Plant, dubbed Brazil’s “trans-century project,” demonstrates this partnership. In February 2014, the State Grid of China collaborated with Brazil’s Eletrobras to win the bid for the first phase of the plant’s ultra-high-voltage transmission project. The Chinese company then independently won the bid for the second phase in July 2015. The project has benefited 22 million people, equivalent to 10% of Brazil’s total population.

Chinese high-tech investment continues to flow into Brazil. Carmaker BYD, for example, plans to build a large-scale production base complex of three factories in the Brazilian state of Bahia.

In August 2023, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva unveiled the Growth Acceleration Program, known in Portuguese as PAC, to spend 1 trillion reais ($200 billion) on infrastructure, energy and transportation over the next four years. China introduced the well-known Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013. In November 2023, China and Brazil decided to align the BRI with the PAC and other development strategies. This alignment is expected to attract more Chinese investment to Brazil.

China and Brazil possess numerous complementary advantages that have driven rapid growth in bilateral trade. The trade value between the two nations has surged from $87 billion a decade ago to $188 billion in 2024. This upward trend will continue, especially as China plans to increase its imports of soybeans and other key products from Brazil.

The two countries need to consider reaching a free trade agreement (FTA) to further promote bilateral trade. Brazil is a member of the South American trade bloc Mercosur. Research shows a free trade agreement between Mercosur and China could boost Brazil’s economy significantly by 2035, raising GDP by 1.43%, foreign investment by 7.2% and exports by 7%.

More than 200 years ago, tea cultivation came to Brazil when Emperor Dom Jo?o VI brought 500 Chinese tea farmers from Macao. German biologists Johann Baptist Spix and Carl von Martius wrote in their 1824 book “Travels in Brazil (1817-1821)”: “The tea grown here (in Brazil) is harvested and processed using the same methods as in China.” Likewise, many Chinese restaurants prepare BBQ beef using Brazilian methods.

However, the future bilateral relationship between China and Brazil will be different in this new era. This upgrade from a comprehensive strategic partnership to “a community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet” promises stronger political alignment, expanded win-win economic cooperation and deeper mutual understanding.