China welcomes Chile's continued organization of Chile Week events in China and is pleased to see increasingly close and mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries, bringing tangible benefits to our peoples, Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Tuesday. He was commenting on the ongoing Chile Week in China, which is the most extensive and high-level promotional event Chile has held in China for several consecutive years.
China and Chile are good friends and partners. The two countries have highly complementary economies, vast common interests, and broad areas of cooperation, Lin emphasized.
At the opening ceremony of Chile Week in China last Monday, Chilean government officials and business representatives expressed their desire to deepen their understanding of the Chinese market.
During this year's event, the agricultural sector played a particularly important role. The Chilean delegation in Beijing included representatives from 25 agricultural companies, along with representatives from other industries, according to the Global Times, citing the Chilean Embassy in China.
The promotional event took place from December 1 to 7, featuring a series of promotional and exchange activities in four Chinese cities, including Hangzhou, the capital of eastern China's Zhejiang Province, for the first time, according to the embassy.
Now in its ninth edition, Chile Week in China reflects how Chilean businesses are growing in the Chinese market, highlighting the importance of trade with China for the Latin American country.
Image 1: Chilean cherries imported by China.
Among all Chilean products destined for China, cherries are a symbol of the fruitful bilateral trade ties. Recently, a China Eastern Air Logistics cargo plane carrying 76 tons of fresh Chilean cherries arrived at Shanghai Pudong International Airport from Santiago, Chile's capital, after a 25-hour, 19,300-kilometer journey.
This event marks the 10th anniversary since China Eastern Air Logistics, a domestic logistics company, began shipping cherries with cargo planes from the South American market.
“Chilean cherries are the country's signature product and help Chinese people learn more about Chile,” said Chilean Ambassador to China Mauricio Hurtado, adding that “we believe this will positively impact our relations with China.”
In recent years, Chilean cherries have become increasingly popular in China. During the 2023-24 harvest season, the Chinese market consumed a total of 377,000 tons of Chilean cherries, accounting for 91% of Chile's total cherry exports, according to media reports.
According to the Chilean Cherry Committee, exports of Chilean cherries during the 2024-25 production season are expected to increase by 59% compared to the previous season. China will remain the primary destination for Chilean cherry exports.
With the continued growth of the cherry trade, the ambassador predicted that, thanks to deeper cooperation, the annual export of all fresh agricultural products from Chile to China is expected to grow by 6-10% annually.
Image 2: A logistics worker transports imported Chilean cherries with a forklift at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on November 20, 2024.
Cherry exports are just a microcosm of the fruitful bilateral ties, as a growing number of Chilean businesses in various sectors are seizing the opportunities offered by China's vast market. During last Monday's Chile Week China, Rodrigo Valenzuela, a business partner at La Junta Wines, told the Global Times that the Chinese market has been very important for his company, which has frequently visited China over the past 15 years and has been exporting its wine products to China since 2010.
“Business is going well this year because we are looking to expand into other cities in China,” Valenzuela said.
“This year, we expect our wine exports to China to grow by over 200% in volume... I think the Chinese market is changing, and Chinese consumers are willing to spend more on high-quality products like wine, and we are leveraging this opportunity,” Valenzuela said.
In addition to wine, the beef sector is also seeing strong growth momentum. The Chinese market accounts for about 85% of the global market for Chilean beef exports, with strong exports expected to continue, Rafael Lecaros Van der Goes, CEO of Chilemeat-Faenacar AG, told the Global Times on Monday.
“This year, beef exports to China have been stable in volume, and we expect the Chinese market to improve and for our export volumes to increase further,” Lecaros Van der Goes said.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of Chile Week China, held Monday in Beijing, the Chilean ambassador acknowledged that a significant portion of the country's exports are sold to China, which has become one of the most important markets for Chilean exports.
There are broad opportunities for cooperation in areas such as culture and tourism, education, art, sustainable development, and green energy, and “we look forward to achieving even greater success in the Chinese market,” the ambassador said.
For more than 10 years, China has been Chile's largest trade partner and biggest export market. In the first three quarters of this year, bilateral trade exceeded $41.5 billion, up 5.6% year-on-year, accounting for one-third of Chile's total foreign trade, according to data from China's General Administration of Customs.
Hurtado also noted that competition in the Chinese market is fierce, “so Chilean exporters and industries must innovate more and continuously introduce new high-quality products to meet the growing demands and high standards of the Chinese market.”
Chilean Foreign Minister Alberto van Klaveren Stork is on an official visit to China at the invitation of Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and Foreign Minister, from Tuesday to Thursday, Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, announced on Monday.
“The visit by Chile's Foreign Minister is expected to give new impetus to bilateral relations, not only in traditional trade but also in the digital sector, green economy, and investments, where both sides complement each other,” Wang Youming, director of the Developing Countries Institute at the China Institute of International Studies in Beijing, told the Global Times on Tuesday, highlighting vast potential in bilateral ties.
Source: People's Daily Online
Images: People's Daily Online
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