Trade and Trends

As 2023 draws to a close, it is high time to take stock of relations be-tween China and Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries—and look to the future. In recent decades, the rapid progress of economic and trade partnerships has become the ballast and stabilizer of China-LAC rela-tions. According to the latest annual report of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the value of trade between China and LAC coun-tries increased 35 times from 2000 to 2022. In particular, the figure reached a record high of over $480 billion last year.