Brazil has surpassed US$100 billion in trade exports to a single country for the first time, according to reports.
Brazil shipped a total of US$105.7 billion in goods to China in 2023, over US$34 billion more than to its second largest trade partner, the US. Brazilian exports, up 16.6 percent, proved enough to offset a 12.5 percent drop in imports from China, which totalled US$53.16 billion.
Of the main products exported by Brazil – soybeans, iron ore and oil – China was the top destination for all three in 2023.
[See more: Over-reliance on China holds risks for Brazil’s soybean exporters, analyst warns]
China accounted for US$38.9 billion of Brazilian soy exports, around 73.1 percent of the 102 million tons exported by the South American nation last year.
China also bought more than 64 percent of Brazilian iron ore exports, to the tune of US$30.53 billion, as well as nearly half of Brazil’s oil exports for US$19.8 billion.
While the two countries see their deepening bilateral trade relations as positive, there has been some concern about Brazil’s growing dependency on China, which has been the main destination for Brazil’s exports since 2009. Soy, in particular, could pose a risk with Brazilian production expanding even as Chinese demand stagnates.
