Portuguese-speaking countries saw exports to China in the first eight months fall to the lowest point for the period since 2020, according to data shared by Forum Macao.
The period between January and August saw exports from Portuguese-speaking countries dip 11.26 percent to US$86.6 billion, driven in large part by a double-digit drop in exports from Brazil, China’s largest trade partner in the bloc.
Brazil sold US$72.65 billion in goods to China, down 10.9 percent from the same period last year. Angola, which came in second with US$10.46 billion in sales to China, saw a slightly bigger drop, down 13.1 percent compared to the first eight months of 2024.
Portugal’s exports to China shrank just 6.9 percent to US$1.94 billion, making it the third-largest partner. Most of the nine-member bloc saw declines, including Mozambique (-5.2 percent), Equatorial Guinea (-44.6 percent), Cabo Verde (-87.5 percent) and Timor-Leste (-72.2 percent), while Guinea Bissau sold nothing.
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China continued its trade deficit with the lusophone world, reaching US$28.97 billion, as the Asian giant saw its own sales to the bloc shrink 1.4 percent to US$57.65 billion in the January-August period. Total trade for the first eight months of 2025 amounted to US$155.27 billion, a drop of 7.58 percent year-on-year.
Brazil remained the largest importer of Chinese goods in the bloc, despite the US$46.86 billion in purchases marking a 5.3-percent decline compared to the first eight months of 2024.
Six countries in the bloc increased purchases from China during the period, most notably Portugal and Angola, buying US$4.52 billion (+8.0 percent) and US$3.4 billion (+64.4 percent), respectively. Mozambique bought 4.9-percent more from China, coming in as the fourth-largest buyer with US$2.41 billion in Chinese goods.
São Tomé and Príncipe saw the biggest percentage increase. Purchases of Chinese goods surged 131.8-percent over the same period last year, amounting to US$31.37 million.
