Mutual benefit and win-win results are the overarching principle for the growth of the relations between China and Latin America and the Caribbean, China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Thursday.

Lin Jian, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson/ MFA PRC

Lin made the remarks at the regular press conference in response to the news that according to the International Trade Outlook for Latin America and the Caribbean 2024 recently issued by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), China is an important trade partner and the fastest-growing export market for Latin America and the Caribbean. In the 2000-2022 period, goods trade between the region and China expanded 35 times, while the region's total trade with the world only increased fourfold.

Lin said that mutual benefit and win-win results are the overarching principle for the growth of the relations between China and Latin America and the Caribbean. Just as the report of ECLAC indicates, the trade volume between China and LAC countries has kept increasing in recent years, which reached US$489 billion last year. In the first three quarters this year, trade in goods between both sides hit US$427.4 billion, up by 7.7 percent year on year, and the total amount for the whole year is expected to exceed US$500 billion.

"Since the beginning of the new century, the region's trade in goods with China has grown at a much faster rate than that with the world, underlying the highly complementary nature of the economies of both sides. Due to the advantage of providing off-season supply, Chile, which is farthest from China in this region, has become China's second largest source of fresh fruit imports and Chilean cherries are now star products here in China. Also, China's new energy industrial chain offers a more affordable resolution for the region's green transformation. So far, China has five free trade partners in the region and has signed an early harvest arrangement of free trade agreement with Honduras and concluded substantial negotiations to upgrade the free trade agreement with Peru." Lin added.

Lin pointed out that the surge of trade in goods between China and Latin America and the Caribbean is supported by the huge market and bright prospect between the two sides. China is the world's second largest economy and largest consumer market, with a middle-income group totaling over 400 million people, and that number is expected to hit 800 million. Latin America and the Caribbean has a population of 660 million with younger demographic composition and boasts enormous potential for economic development. As China and Latin America and the Caribbean see each other as opportunities for development, we believe that with the concerted effort of both sides, our trade in goods will continue to grow at a high speed and achieve win-win results at a higher level. (By Ma Ziqian/China Youth Daily)

来源：中国青年报客户端