Relationship dossier
Brazil
People's Republic of China
Relationship assessment
A substantial partnership built on trade, investment and strategic cooperation, alongside recurring economic concerns.
Brazil toward People's Republic of China
+50Brazil has pursued a strategic partnership with China, deepened through the 2012 elevation to a comprehensive strategic partnership. Successive governments have maintained economic and multilateral cooperation with Beijing. In 2024, Brazil chose not to formally join China’s Belt and Road Initiative while pursuing other bilateral agreements.
People's Republic of China toward Brazil
+50China has developed extensive economic and strategic cooperation with Brazil, including major trade and investment ties. It has treated Brazil as a significant partner in multilateral forums and maintained high-level bilateral engagement, including the comprehensive strategic partnership established in 2012.
Overall relationship
+50The relationship has a durable cooperative structure, supported by a strategic partnership, extensive trade and investment, and recurring multilateral engagement. Economic ties are central, but concerns about trade patterns and competition temper the partnership.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Brazil and China have developed a substantial, long-running partnership spanning trade, investment and multilateral cooperation. Their relationship was elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2012, and China has been Brazil’s largest trading partner since 2009. Cooperation has continued across successive Brazilian governments, though disagreements and concerns over trade and industrial competition have also arisen.
Areas of tension
- Brazilian concerns about trade imbalances and the effects of Chinese competition on domestic industry.
Key developments
China became Brazil’s largest trading partner.
Brazil and China elevated their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership.
Brazil declined to formally join China’s Belt and Road Initiative while pursuing other bilateral cooperation agreements.
Major uncertainties
- The implementation and long-term effects of recent bilateral cooperation agreements are unclear.
- The extent to which trade and investment concerns will shape future policy is uncertain.