Trade between China and Portuguese-speaking countries totalled US$8.281 billion in January 2017, which was a year-on-year increase of 7.52%, according to official figures from China released by Forum Macau.

Angola and Brazil accounted in January for 92% of trade between China and the eight Portuguese-speaking countries with a total of US$7.625 billion.

China’s trade with Angola amounted to US$2.026 billion (an annual increase of 50.47%), with China selling products to Angola worth US$167 million (-6.07%) and purchasing goods, mainly oil, worth US$1.859 billion (+59.08%).

With Brazil two-way trade reached US$5.599 billion (-0.33%) and Chinese enterprises imported products from Brazil worth US$3.208 billion (-4.46%) and sold goods whose value stood at US$2.390 billion (+5.80%).

Portugal is third in terms of trade value, which stood at US$407 million (-16.85%) in January, with Chinese exports amounting to US$259 million (-19.52%) and Portuguese exports worth US$147 million (-11.66%).

In fourth place was Mozambique with bilateral trade worth US$168 million (+2.24%), in which Chinese companies sold products worth US$120 million (+ 2.16%) and bought goods in the amount of US$47 million (+2.44%).

With other Portuguese-speaking countries – Cabo Verde (Cape Verde), Guinea-Bissau, Timor-Leste (East Timor) and Sao Tome and Principe – trade in January amounted to US$17.8 million.

In 2016, the value of trade between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries fell for the second consecutive year, reaching US$90.874 billion, with an annual contraction of 7.72%. (macauhub)