The head of the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) announced that over 500 Chinese and 200 Brazilian business representatives were present at the event.
In a statement released by the Brazilian Presidency on Monday, Jorge Viana highlighted that 25% of Brazil’s imports originate from the Asian country.
The Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who attended the event’s opening, remarked that China “has been an example” by doing business and investing in “countries neglected” by other powers for decades.
Despite China being “portrayed as an enemy of global trade,” Lula da Silva, who is in Beijing for the China-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) forum, expressed his regrets regarding this image.
Among the key announcements from the Sino-Brazilian business meeting was that of the automaker Great Wall Motor, which will invest six billion reais (952 million euros) to expand its operations in Brazil, from where it will export throughout South America and Mexico.
Half of this investment is slated for the creation of a renewable energy hub in the state of Piauí (northeast Brazil), with construction expected to generate five thousand jobs, according to the Brazilian government.
Earlier, Brazil had announced an investment of one billion dollars (900 million euros) in the production of renewable aviation fuel by the Chinese company Envision Group.
A Research and Development Center for Renewable Energies is to be established in partnership with Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Windey Technology.
The Chinese food delivery giant Meituan plans to invest five billion reais (794 million euros) to enter the Brazilian market through its subsidiary Keeta, which already operates in other countries.
The Brazilian government anticipates that this investment, inked in a contract witnessed by Lula da Silva, will create 100,000 indirect jobs over the next five years.
Additionally, the beverage company Mixue, one of China’s sector leaders, intends to expand into Brazil with an investment of 3.2 billion reais (508 million euros), potentially creating 25,000 jobs by 2030.
The Chinese mining group Baiyin Nonferrous Group announced the acquisition of the Serrote copper mine in the state of Alagoas (northeast) for 2.4 billion reais (381 million euros).
In Beijing, Lula da Silva took part today in the opening of the 11th Ministerial Meeting of the China-CELAC forum, subsequently meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, with whom he will also sign agreements to enhance bilateral cooperation.
The China-CELAC forum also sees the presence of the presidents of Colombia and Chile.
