A shifting trade landscape in Latin America favors China and globalization

China’s increasing presence in Latin America is a much-discussed topic, and for good reason; as China steps up its efforts to establish itself as a super power on the world stage, it has focused on expanding its economic presence in the developing world, including Latin America. Much attention is paid to China’s aid and development projects, largely due to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s 2015 pledge of $250 billion in direct investment to the region by 2019. But an analysis of raw trade data from the ten-year period between 2005 and 2015 reveals that the meteoric nature of the rise of Chinese influence in the Western Hemisphere had begun well before flashy (and dubiously feasible) development projects caught the public eye.

In seven Latin American countries, China has surpassed the United States in as the main destination for exports.  And in five of those countries—Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Peru, and Uruguay—China is now the largest export market.

This is a drastic and rapid shift in the region’s economic landscape.  In 2005, no Latin American country counted China as its main export partner. In all, China is in the top five export markets for twelve Latin American countries, compared to six in 2005…

President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership sends an additional signal to Latin America that the U.S. is retreating from the world stage. The door is open for China and other emerging powers to fill the void and become the new hegemonic economic power in the region.