In 2025, Portuguese-speaking countries imported US$88.1 billion worth of products from China, a year-on-year increase of 3.1% and the highest amount ever, according to official data released.
The figure, which corresponds to 74.8 billion euros, is the highest since the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macau Forum) began reporting this data in 2013. The largest increase was in Timor-Leste, whose sales skyrocketed from just US$881,000 in 2024 to US$27.2 million last year.
Brazil remains the largest buyer in the Portuguese-speaking bloc, despite imports from China falling 0.7% compared to 2024, to US$71.6 billion, according to information from China Customs.
In contrast, Portugal, second on the list, purchased $7.19 billion worth of goods from China, an increase of 17.7%. In the opposite direction, exports from Portuguese-speaking countries to China fell 1.4% in 2025 to $137.7 billion, the lowest figure since 2021, at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decline was mainly due to Angola, the second largest Portuguese-speaking supplier to the Chinese market, which saw exports fall by 9.1% to US$16 billion. In addition, sales of goods from Portugal—China’s third most important trading partner in the Portuguese-speaking bloc—also fell by 10.2% to US$2.85 billion. Five of the nine Portuguese-speaking countries saw their exports to the Chinese market fall.
Sales from Mozambique to China fell 11.9% to $1.59 billion, while exports from Equatorial Guinea fell 20.6% to $779.8 million. Shipments from Cape Verde to China fell 40.9%, although the country sold only about $8,000 worth of goods.
In contrast, exports from Brazil—by far the largest Portuguese-speaking supplier to the Chinese market—rose 0.3% to $116.4 billion. Exports from São Tomé and Príncipe, according to Lusa, more than tripled, reaching $54,000, while sales from Guinea-Bissau rose from $1,000 to $8,000.
Source: Forbes Africa Lusofona
