When it was announced in 2023 that the African Union would become a full member of the G20, I darkly joked on a podcast that the AU’s entry into the body could very well mark the moment the G20 lost its status as one of the most important global coordination forums. Mark my words, I said, soon The Economist will be like “Uhhh, the G20 is OVER – it’s the ...
Category: Latin America
Mexico Approves Measure Raising Tariffs on Chinese Imports
Mexican lawmakers on Wednesday backed a measure to raise tariffs on goods from China and other countries that do not have trade agreements with Mexico, despite strong pushback from Beijing. The move, spearheaded by President Claudia Sheinbaum and approved by the ...
China Calls for End of U.S. Sanctions Against Venezuela, Cuba
China’s Foreign Ministry on Friday called on the United States to revoke its “Illegal and unilateral” sanctions against Venezuela and Cuba. The statement came after the announcement that the Trump administration will designate Cartel de los Soles (Cartel of Suns) as ...
Presidential Race in Honduras Puts China–Taiwan Diplomacy Back on the Line
Sunday’s presidential election in Honduras could shift the diplomatic balance between China and Taiwan in Latin America. The two frontrunners in the election have pledged to break diplomatic ties with Beijing and reestablish them with Taiwan. This follows the ...
China Likely to Bid on Building New Panama Canal Ports
China is among parties interested in bidding to build two new ports on the Panama Canal, its administrator said Tuesday, despite U.S. talk of retaking control of the vital trade route. U.S. President Donald Trump made the threat earlier this year, ...
How Chile’s Chinatown Struggles to Fund Its Own Security Force
Across Latin America, Chinese businesses have long improvised their own forms of protection in the absence of reliable policing: a self-funded protection system sustained through communal pressure, donor lists, and appeals to collective responsibility. A recent series of posts on the Chinese Chile Network, a WeChat public ...
China Pushes Back on Mexican Tariff Plans
China’s Foreign Ministry has lodged its opposition to plans by the Mexican government to impose a range of tariffs on Chinese imports. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters on Tuesday that Beijing “firmly opposes moves taken under coercion to impose restrictions on China or hurt China’s legitimate ...
China’s Young Travelers Unexpectedly Flood Mexico’s Día de Muertos
The number of Chinese travelers at Mexico’s Día de Muertos this year was so high that, as one WeChat article noted, “Mandarin has become the second language along the avenue.” The story, published by Lvjie News, a popular travel-focused WeChat ...
Chinese Media View Milei’s Victory as Deepening Argentina’s Tilt Toward the U.S. and Wall Street
Chinese observers interpret Javier Milei’s triumph not simply as a domestic win for libertarian reform but as a struggle that places Argentina squarely under the shadow of Washington and Wall Street. In an analysis published by The Paper.cn, Yuan Mengqi, ...
Alleged Chinese Fentanyl Kingpin Extradited From Cuba to US: Mexico Govt
A Chinese citizen accused of trafficking fentanyl has been extradited from Cuba to the United States, according to the Mexican government, which helped facilitate the transfer. Zhi Dong Zhang -- known as "Brother Wang" -- escaped house arrest in Mexico in ...
Cuba Captures Chinese Fentanyl Kingpin Wanted by Mexico, U.S.
Cuba has arrested a Chinese fentanyl kingpin who escaped from custody in Mexico in July and is also wanted by the United States, Mexican security sources told AFP on Wednesday. The trafficker Zhi Dong Zhang, known by the alias "Brother Wang," ...
BYD Opens Massive Brazil Plant on Former Ford Site, Underscoring China’s Expanding Foothold in Latin America
Chinese auto giant BYD inaugurated its largest factory outside of Asia in the central Brazilian coastal city of Camaçari late last week. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was there to mark the occasion that also coincided with BYD’s 14 millionth new energy vehicle coming off the assembly line.
How China is Displacing U.S. Economic Power in Latin America
For centuries, the United States was the undisputed hegemonic power across the Western Hemisphere; however, that is no longer the case today. China is now the largest trading partner for the majority of countries in Latin America and is quickly filling ...