{"id":24502,"date":"2023-06-07T15:03:17","date_gmt":"2023-06-07T19:03:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/?p=24502"},"modified":"2023-06-07T15:03:17","modified_gmt":"2023-06-07T19:03:17","slug":"webinar-summary-at-a-crossroads-chinas-post-pandemic-economic-relations-with-latin-america-and-the-caribbean","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2023\/06\/07\/webinar-summary-at-a-crossroads-chinas-post-pandemic-economic-relations-with-latin-america-and-the-caribbean\/","title":{"rendered":"Webinar Summary &#8211; At a Crossroads: China\u2019s Post-Pandemic Economic Relations with Latin America and the Caribbean"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment24274\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment24274\" style=\"width: 646px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-636x477.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"636\" height=\"477\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-24274\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-636x477.jpg 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2023\/05\/geziel-esteban-MGSOR4ERH8w-unsplash-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment24274\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">La Paz, Bolivia. Photo by Geziel Esteban via Unsplash.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/profile\/zara-albright\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Zara C. Albright<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On Wednesday, May 24, 2023, the Boston University Global Development Policy (GDP) Center hosted a webinar discussion with Margaret Myers of the Inter-American Dialogue, Rebecca Ray of the GDP Center and Ignacio Tornero, Founder and CEO of East Consulting and an Adjunct Instructor with Pont\u00edfica Universidad Cat\u00f3lica de Chile, to discuss the evolution of economic relations between Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) and China in the post-pandemic era. Moderated by Ferm\u00edn Koop of the China Dialogue, the discussion highlighted opportunities for collaboration across supply chains for green transition materials and considered new governance challenges for increasingly complex relationships of finance, investment and trade.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"responsiveVideo responsive-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"At a Crossroads: China&#039;s Post-Pandemic Economic Relations with Latin America and the Caribbean\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/k_fqlnSymr8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The conversation began with a high-level overview of new developments in the relationship as outlined in the 2023 edition of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2023\/04\/20\/china-latin-america-and-the-caribbean-economic-bulletin-2023-edition\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">China-Latin America and the Caribbean Economic Bulletin<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. In her remarks, Ray cited the bulletin and emphasized three trends. First, rather than switching from reliance on the US economy to dependence on China, LAC has instead diversified its economic relations towards a more balanced pattern of engagement across multiple partners. Second, the relationship has begun to mature beyond the export of primary products, for example in renewable energy investments or electric vehicle manufacturing. Third, Ray noted the increasing prioritization of LAC goals in the relationship, such as Ecuador\u2019s attention to exporting non-traditional agricultural products in its <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.produccion.gob.ec\/concluye-exitosamente-negociacion-del-acuerdo-comercial-entre-ecuador-y-china\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">recently announced<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> free trade agreement (FTA) with China.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Myers then provided a focused overview of the past year\u2019s loans to LAC countries from China\u2019s two main development finance institutions: China Development Bank (CDB) and the Export-Import Bank of China (CHEXIM). According to a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2023\/03\/21\/at-a-crossroads-chinese-development-finance-to-latin-america-and-the-caribbean-2022\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">recent report<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> co-authored by Myers and Ray, $813 million in loans were signed in 2022 between China\u2019s DFIs and three LAC countries: Barbados, Brazil and Guyana. Myers highlighted a potential new focus on the Caribbean where smaller loans can have a much greater impact. These loans are part of a more diversified global financial landscape, she pointed out, where non-traditional development lenders such as the New Development Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank are also important players. As the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impacts recede, Myers expects future financing from these DFIs for projects such as a potential expansion of Argentina\u2019s Cauchari solar project, zinc refineries in Bolivia and the Patuca II dam in Honduras.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tornero provided a deeper look into Chile\u2019s relationship with China, which, in his view, has taken a stable and pragmatic approach since the establishment of relations in 1970. He <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sice.oas.org\/tpd\/chl_chn\/chl_chn_e.asp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">cited<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the Chile-China FTA signed in 2005 and the average 14 percent annual growth in bilateral trade since then. He cautioned that the export basket is composed mainly of mining products, copper in particular, and that diversification remains a major challenge. In recent years, lithium <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2021\/08\/16\/can-escazu-turn-mining-green-in-the-lithium-triangle-lofty-promises-meet-a-thirsty-industry-in-the-desert\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">has grown in importance<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for both trade and investment from China, offering a new opportunity to move Chile\u2019s exports up the supply chain into batteries or electric vehicles.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Koop then turned the conversation towards potential challenges on the horizon for the China-LAC relationship, including lithium governance policies and rising investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) claims from Chinese firms.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2022\/12\/12\/faq-what-is-investor-state-dispute-settlement-and-what-does-it-mean-for-climate-action\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ISDS mechanisms<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> allow private investors to sue host countries when regulations or policy decisions negatively affect their profits. Ray summarized <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/investmentpolicy.unctad.org\/investment-dispute-settlement\/country\/42\/china\/investor\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the first ever case<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of a private Chinese company suing a LAC state over environmental regulations. In 2018, an Ecuadorian court had halted operations at the R\u00edo Blanco gold mine, owned and operated by Hong-Kong based Junefield, citing the company\u2019s lack of sufficient consultation with Indigenous communities over the mine\u2019s environmental impacts. While GDP Center research <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2017\/03\/12\/china-and-sustainable-development-in-latin-america-the-social-and-environmental-dimension\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">shows<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that Chinese investors have historically been flexible in adapting to host country regulations, Ray noted that a new trend of ISDS claims from Chinese companies presents a challenge for LAC countries to establish and enforce environmental and social governance regulations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another legal question for LAC countries is how to manage local content requirements and mergers with Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Tornero explained that Chile\u2019s current legal regime for reviewing potential mergers is narrowly focused on the technical question of whether the merger would create an unfair monopoly. All energy-related mergers and acquisitions by Chinese SOEs in Chile have thus been approved, including State Grid Corporation of China\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.investchile.gob.cl\/success_stories\/state-grid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">acquisition<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of nearly 60 percent of Chile\u2019s electricity distribution network, despite concerns that these companies lack sufficient transparency with respect to the role of Chinese Communist Party officials.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite these governance challenges, new diplomatic developments show deepening of existing China-LAC relationships. Myers characterized China\u2019s diplomatic efforts in the region as shaping the broader environment to further its economic goals, such as exporting excess industrial capacity or securing access to supply chains for key minerals or food products. She also highlighted the emerging structure of multi-tiered diplomacy, where China engages with LAC countries on a regional level through the <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.chinacelacforum.org\/eng\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Forum of China and Community of Latin American States<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (China-CELAC) and at the sub-national level through projects such as smart cities or contracts with provinces, like that with Jujuy in Argentina for the Cauchari solar plant.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The discussion concluded with each panelist offering their perspective on anticipated developments for the China-LAC relationship in the coming years. Ray posed the question of whether China will be willing to act on the new priorities LAC is putting forth, such as supporting lithium battery production facilities beyond extraction. Tornero reflected on how ongoing shifts in geopolitical and macroeconomic relations between China, the US and the European Union may impact the LAC region. Myers noted the uncertainty regarding how China will grapple with the outstanding debt owed to it by LAC countries, as the fallout from multiple economic shocks ripple through the region.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ray, Myers, Tornero and Koop\u2019s conversation underscored the increasingly complex relations between China and LAC, as new actors, opportunities and challenges emerge on the landscape. In the post-pandemic global context, renewed partnerships will be needed to ensure LAC countries can effectively leverage the benefits of a green energy transition, diversified trading relationships and multiple levels of diplomatic relations with China.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">*<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Never miss an update:\u00a0<\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/gdpcenter.org\/GCI-Subscribe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Subscribe to the Global China Initiative Newsletter<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Zara C. Albright On Wednesday, May 24, 2023, the Boston University Global Development Policy (GDP) Center hosted a webinar discussion with Margaret Myers of the Inter-American Dialogue, Rebecca Ray of the GDP Center and Ignacio Tornero, Founder and CEO of East Consulting and an Adjunct Instructor with Pont\u00edfica Universidad Cat\u00f3lica de Chile, to discuss [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21625,"featured_media":24274,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[398,156,72,1075,76],"tags":[3318,1095,394,2964,3554,2958,3551,543,1824,702,3679,3677,1473,3678,469,689,650,175,465,610,419,494,693],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24502"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21625"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24502"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24502\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24517,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24502\/revisions\/24517"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24274"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}