Create opportunities to promote the quality and upgrading of economic and trade cooperation
The World Bank recently released a report stating that Peru’s GDP will grow by 7.6% in 2020, making it one of the best performing countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
According to statistics from the General Administration of Customs of China, in the first 11 months of 2020, the total import and export trade between China and Peru reached 20.7 billion U.S. dollars, and China's imports were 12.8 billion U.S. dollars.
Former Minister of Energy and Mining of Peru Inchevstegui said that China's economy continues to improve and the continuous deepening of Peru-China economic and trade cooperation will help promote the economic and social development of Peru.
Jointly promote trade cooperation to add vitality to economic recovery
"The taste is great, and the packaging is very national. I will try the other two flavors next time!" In the evaluation area of an Inca praline in the Peru National Pavilion of Jingdong, a customer left a message like this.
At the end of last year, the Peruvian National Pavilion entered China's e-commerce platform, and the first batch of specialty products such as chocolate, quinoa, pisco and alpaca products went online.
At the same time, the Peruvian Export and Tourism Promotion Committee has organized several food promotion activities in China to introduce live-streaming the process of making delicious quinoa, white prawns, avocados and blueberries. It also held Peruvian Food Week to promote specialty agricultural products.
In recent years, Peru has continuously enriched the types of agricultural products produced and exported, and created a "superfood" brand with high nutritional value and large profit margins, and its attention to the Chinese market has been increasing.
China is Peru’s largest export destination. It has undertaken a large number of traditional Peruvian products, such as copper, iron, fish meal and coffee. Imports of non-traditional products such as squid, avocado, blueberries and quinoa have also increased significantly.
According to Peru’s official statistics, Peru’s exports of non-traditional products to China reached a record US$612 million in 2019. Driven by fruits such as blueberries and grapes, sales of agricultural products increased by 15%.
The report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation of Peru at the beginning of the year predicts that under the impact of the epidemic, Peru’s agriculture will maintain positive growth in 2020 and is one of the few economic sectors that have not fallen into recession.
"For fruits such as blueberries, grapes, and mangoes, Peru looks forward to providing China with sufficient anti-seasonal supplies." Roland, chairman of the Peru-China Investment Development Association, said that China's sustained economic recovery has improved the export prospects of Latin American countries and helped Peru respond to the epidemic. Economic downturn.
"China has become an important trading partner of Peru and a major export market for Peru. It has brought countless opportunities for Peruvian companies. It can be said that the signing of the free trade agreement is a milestone in the relationship between the two countries." At a seminar held at the end of last year, Claudia Cornejo, Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru, commented.
Last year was the tenth year that the China-Peru Free Trade Agreement came into effect. This was the first free trade agreement package signed between China and Latin American countries.
Over the past 10 years, Peru’s exports to China totaled US$89.958 billion, and nearly 800 new products were exported to China, most of which belonged to non-traditional fields, such as metal machinery, chemicals and textiles; more than 1,500 newly registered export companies to China More than 70% of them are small and micro enterprises.
In 2019, the utilization rate of the China-Peru FTA exceeded 97%.
Currently, China and Peru are negotiating to upgrade the free trade agreement.
Carlos Aquino, Director of the Center for Asian Studies at the National University of San Marcos in Peru, said: "China's e-commerce is very developed, and the promotion of related cooperation between the two countries is of great significance to Peruvian SMEs. Peruvian agricultural products companies will also benefit from the upgrade of the free trade agreement. ."
Sharing scientific and technological achievements to inject momentum into the relations between the two countries
Peruvian President Sagasti recently stated that Peru has reached an agreement with China National Pharmaceutical Group to purchase the inactivated new crown vaccine developed by the group, and the first batch of 1 million doses of vaccine will arrive in Peru at the end of January.
He said that the Phase III clinical trial of the new crown inactivated vaccine conducted by China National Pharmaceutical Group in Peru has shown the effectiveness of the vaccine, and he will receive the Chinese vaccine when necessary.
China is Peru’s largest source of imports, and most of its imported products are concentrated in the fields of mobile phones, automobiles, motorcycles and construction machinery.
According to Peruvian media reports, in the first eight months of last year, among the top five mobile phones imported by Peru, Chinese brands occupied three seats. Among them, Huawei ranked first with 33%, Xiaomi and ZTE ranked third, respectively. Fourth place.
In the automobile market, the recognition of Chinese brands such as Changan, Beiqi Foton, and Jianghuai has been increasing.
Some analysts pointed out that price, comfort and design are the primary considerations for local customers when they choose Chinese cars.
During the epidemic prevention and control period last year, JAC launched live broadcast of new cars in Peru, driving sales growth; Geely launched a virtual showroom in the local area to facilitate customers to watch cars in the cloud and complete online transactions.
"Chinese consumer products are of high quality and price, which benefits Peruvian consumers; importing industrial products such as machinery with price and quality advantages will help Peru’s textile and other industries to modernize." In Aquino’s view, China’s communications equipment and services It is also very advantageous.
"I look forward to China's ability to help Peru develop 5G networks and introduce related technologies such as smart applications and smart cities to Peru to inject impetus into Peru's development from both hardware and software."
The overall interconnection and social development broadband installation project in Ancash, Peru was undertaken by China Railway Tenth Bureau and YOFC Peru, and is expected to be completed in April this year.
After the completion of the project, people in remote communities will enjoy convenient network services, such as remote education and telemedicine, benefiting more than 500,000 people.
In fact, in the digital transformation that Peru is currently advancing, YOFC, Huawei, ZTE and other Chinese companies have begun to play an important role.
Peruvian Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Bisnia Nakagawa stated that the construction of communication networks, especially the improvement of connectivity in rural areas, will effectively promote the economic development of Peru. Chinese equipment manufacturers and telecom operators are welcome to actively cooperate with the Peruvian government.
Build infrastructure together to accumulate strength for long-term development
About 60 kilometers north from Lima, the capital of Peru, there is a natural deep-water port of Chankai Bay.
At present, a large port is under construction, and will become an important transportation hub and logistics center along the South Pacific coast in the future, which will greatly facilitate Peru's import and export trade.
The Port of Chancellery project is controlled by China Ocean Shipping Group. The first phase of the project includes a multi-functional terminal, a logistics area, and a tunnel connecting the two. It is China's first large-scale transportation infrastructure project in Peru.
"The terminal will be automated, and all cargo loading and unloading will be completed through electrical equipment, which is very environmentally friendly." said Carlos Tejada, deputy general manager of COSCO Shipping Chancay Port.
Mining is the starting point for China's investment in Peru, and it is also a key investment area.
The Las Bonbas project invested by China Minmetals Group is one of the largest copper mine projects in the world, and it can boost Peru's economic growth by 1% to 1.5% every year.
The power and energy sector also attracts a lot of Chinese capital.
In 2016, China and Peru signed a memorandum of understanding on development cooperation mechanisms in the energy sector.
Since then, the Three Gorges Group has initiated a series of investments, building the San Gawang Level 3 Hydropower Station, acquiring the Chagya Hydropower Station, and completing the acquisition of Peru’s largest electric power company last year. Chinese-funded enterprises entered the Peruvian large-scale public utility sector for the first time.
At present, many Chinese companies are active in Peru's road network renovation, school and hospital renovation and expansion projects.
China has become Peru's largest source of investment. More than 170 Chinese companies have entered Peru, with a cumulative investment of more than 30 billion U.S. dollars.
Peru’s Ambassador to China Luis Quesada stated that Peru’s infrastructure funding gap will reach US$110 billion in 2025, which provides huge opportunities for Chinese companies.
Rosario Santjadea, director of the Center for China and Asia-Pacific Studies at Peru Pacific University, believes that Peru's participation in the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” can actively create influential trans-Pacific projects.
“In the process of establishing the economic corridor between China and Latin America, Peru is expected to become the anchor point of the economic corridor and a trade and digital hub connecting China and South America by virtue of its geographical location and close relationship with China.”
(Report from Rio de Janeiro, January 22)
Our reporter Zhu Dongjun in Brazil