On the eve of the BRICS summit, which will bring together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa in Brasília next week, massive investments and job creation in Brazil are at the highest level of government optimism

Academics and specialists in Brazil-China relations and businessmen from both countries were optimistic about the expansion of bilateral relations and the expansion of bilateral business. Infrastructure, pre-salt layer and the bioeconomy are China's main focus in the country. On the other hand, increasing Chinese urbanization has changed consumption habits, especially in food, creating opportunities for Brazilian agribusiness exports.

These are some of the conclusions of three debate panels promoted by CEBRI (Brazilian Center for International Relations), during the international seminar “Brazil-China Partnership: Trends and Opportunities”, sponsored by Vale and in partnership with the Academic Center for China Economic Practice and Thought (ACCEPT) of Tsinghua University and the Brazil-China Business Council (CEBC), at the Museum of Tomorrow, in Rio, this Wednesday (07.11).

“CEBRI has been looking with special attention at China, in the commercial relationship between the countries, and in the opportunities to advance in these partnerships, especially through China's innovation and sustainability policies”, highlighted Anna Jaguaribe, Member of the Board of Trustees of CEBRI. Brazilian Center for International Relations (CEBRI) and Director of the Institute of Brazil-China Studies (IBRACH). The event is part of the parallel program to the XI BRICS Summit.

The event addressed the main trends in the transformations underway in China, especially in the face of increasing urbanization, the advancement of consumption and demographic transition. For the Chinese representatives, Chen TaoTao, Director of the Latin America Center at Tsinghua University (business environment, capabilities of new Chinese multinationals), and Pepe Zhang, Associate Director of the Atlantic Council, the significant changes the country has been going through with urbanization, from the interior to the coast, based on the opportunities that arose with the arrival of large investments in port logistics over the last 40 years. This is the opposite of Latin America, which was colonized from the coast and expansion took place towards the interior. According to them, there is a need for infrastructure to meet this migration, there is intense job creation, especially in the production of technology, and consequently there are changes in consumer behavior in products, such as food, for example, which are no longer grown in the countryside. and are imported.

For the former Brazilian Ambassador to China, Marcos Caramuru, and Board Member of CEBRI, while there is immense competition for foreigners who want to do business in China, due to the verticalization of the economy, quality and innovation developed in the local market, there is an avenue of opportunities, as in China's GDP growth, the share of consumption is around 70%, and investments at 30%. “Consumption is growing and this consumption is led by urban youth, who, unlike their parents and grandparents, are willing to go into debt”, he commented, noting that current urbanization is currently around 60% while that of Latin America is by 80%.

Present at the seminar promoted by CEBRI to discuss trends and challenges, BRF and Suzano are two companies that are strongly operating in the Chinese market, one focused on food exports and the other on pulp and paper exports. In common between both is the previously built capacity to meet the demands of the Chinese consumer, such as traceability technology, strict environmental rules in reference to production at origin and the intense control of the entire production process. “China has focused efforts on very disciplined environmental public policies, which have already generated positive effects on water, soil, air, and require the same efforts from its suppliers”, evaluated Suzano's Institutional Relations director, Pablo Machado.

The event also dealt with the convergences and possibilities of joint work in the innovation, connectivity and digitalization ecosystems, with the participation of Paulo Dallari, Director of Institutional Relations at 99, in Brazil, a company that was acquired by the Chinese Didi Chuxing, and Brazilian specialists in the financing these new technologies. For the superintendent of the Operations and Digital Channels Area at the BNDES, Marcelo Porteiro, technology has the disruptive power to change the way small companies work. “This is sometimes hampered by the lack of financeable mechanisms, and that is where the Bank intends to act, enabling the development of these small companies, whether through incentives for startups or other means.”

Adriano Proença, Professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and Member of the Scientific Council of the Institute of Brazil-China Studies (IBRACH), one of the main specialists in the study of “sinocentry”, the strong movement that brought Chinese investments to Brazil , the synergy between the two countries can bring long-term experience to Brazil. Planning cycles are very long term and this is perhaps the Chinese differential that can serve as a reference for Brazil towards sustainable development. Celina Bottino, Project Director at the Institute of Technology and Society (ITS-Rio), highlighted that in addition to long-term planning, there is a concern with social inclusion in all development strategies and infrastructure investments.

Source: CEBRI