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The largest slice of China’s trade with such countries is with Angola, largely due to the latter’s sale of oil to the Asian giant, which accounted for almost all of its exports to the country in the period, at USD 10.6 billion. China’s exports to Angola were worth USD 1.5 billion.
The value of trade between China and members in Africa of the Community of Portuguese-Language Countries (CPLP) in the first half of this year was up by an average of 22% on a year earlier, to USD 13.7 billion (€12.3 billion), according to official customs data from China.
The largest slice of China’s trade with such countries is with Angola, largely due to the latter’s sale of oil to the Asian giant, which accounted for almost all of its exports to the country in the period, at USD 10.6 billion. China’s exports to Angola were worth USD 1.5 billion.
In second place among China’s biggest partners in Portuguese-language Africa is Mozambique, which sold USD 721 million in goods and services and bought the equivalent of USD 1.6 billion. In the cases of Equatorial Guinea and Mozambique, there was a drop in trade of 12.8% and 6.0% respectively on a year earlier. The increase in trade between Portuguese-language countries and China reflects the latter’s aim to increase not only its trade relations with Africa, but especially the volume of imports, to counter criticism of a trade imbalance in China’s favour.
In 2021, at the most recent Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), China promised to increase imports of African products to USD 300 billion (€271 billion) by 2024, up from the USD 275 billion it averaged in the previous three years, that is between 2019 and 2021Analysts note that the target of bilateral trade was only USD 14 billion away Although there has been an increase in African exports to China, African purchases have grown faster, thus worsening the deficit. Since 2022, the trade deficit has widened, from US$39 billion in 2021 (35.24 billion euros) to USD 63 billion (56.9 billion euros) in 2023. Last year, 83% of exports to China were made by just eight countries, all of them rich in natural resources.
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Among the measures that African and Chinese leaders could approve this week in Beijing, the analyst suggests mechanisms to finance African banks, lower customs duties and harness the potential of the continental free trade agreement in Africa.
China Trade of Portuguese Speaking African Countries in First Half of 2024YEAR-ON-YEAR CHANGE (in Million Dollars)
Country Trade (in Million Dollars) % Change (Year on year)
Angola 10,628 4.6%
Cabo Verde 56.6 11.4%
Guinea-Bissau 35.1 80.8%
Equatorial Guinea 675 12.8%
Mozambique 2,388 6.0%
São Tomé and Príncipe 9.3 56.5%
SOURCE: China Customs Bureau Statistics
