Trade between China and Portuguese-speaking countries reached US$23.97 billion in the first quarter of the year, an increase of 43.33% compared to US$ 16.72 billion in the same period of 2016, according to figures from Forum Macau.

In the first three months of the year, China exported goods worth US$7.07 billion (+21.09%) to the eight Portuguese-speaking countries and imported goods worth US$16.89 billion (+55.27%), taking on a trade deficit of US$9.82 billion.

With Brazil, China’s largest trading partner in the world, trade reached US$16.77 billion (+44.61%), with China selling US$5.62 billion’s worth of goods (+32.42%) and buying Brazilian products worth US$11.15 billion (+51.64%).

Angola, which usually ranks second in terms of value, recorded trade with China amounting to US$5.55 billion (+61.32%), with Chinese companies exporting goods worth US$412 million (+19.28%) and importing products worth US$5.14 billion (+66.01%).

In third place is Portugal, with trade with China worth US$1.16 billion (-5.79%), with Chinese exports totalling US$719 million (-23.51%) and imports of US$445 million (+50.48%).

China’s trade with Mozambique reached US$424 million (+4.98%), with Chinese companies exporting goods valued at US$ 276 million (+0.22%) and importing products worth US$276 million (+15.10%).

With the remaining Portuguese-speaking countries – Cabo Verde (Cape Verde), Guinea-Bissau, Sao Tome and Principe and Timor-Leste (East Timor) – China recorded trade in the first quarter amounting to US$43.58 million. (macauhub)