Peru is home to the second largest destination of Chinese investment in Latin America, and in 2023 around 36% of Peru exports of goods went to the Chinese market, consolidating its position as the biggest trade partner of Peru. In this way Peru is the country with the closer relations with China in Latin America, at least in economic terms. To understand the extent of Peru relations with China, it is necessary to know something about the history of that relations. Besides the fact that Peru has one of the more liberal regimes for welcoming foreign investment (and plenty of natural resources, especially in the mining sector), there is a special relationship between both countries. History and Peru strategic geographical situation in South America also explain China big involvement in Peru. And there is an economic complementarity between both countries. Peru is home to the largest Chinee community in Latin America because from 1849 Chinese labourers began coming to work in the large estate or plantation (hacienda, where sugar cane and cotton was cultivated)) in Peru, and to collect guano, the accumulation of bird excrement , used as fertilizer. Peru established diplomatic relations with the People´s Republic of China (PRC) in 1971, being the third in Latin America, after Chile and Cuba, but in 1874 Peru was the first country in the region to establish diplomatic relations with the Qing Empire. In 2008 Peru and China signed its Strategic Partnership. The aim with this is not only to be trade partners, but also to increase and consolidate relations in areas of politics and cooperation. For example, among different public entities, political parties, civil society. This included consultation and cooperation in the international forum where both countries participate. In 2009 they signed its Free Trade Agreement, the second country in Latin America after Chile to have one with China, which come into effect in 2010. In 2013 Peru and China signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This allowed both countries the people-to-people cooperation in areas technical and cultural. Relations have increased not only in the trade and investment field but others like the Chinese cooperation to build the National Emergency Operation Centre , an institution under the National Institute of Civil Defense. The first travel abroad of Pedro Prado Kuczynski, as Presidente of Peru, was to China in September 2016 First vaccines against Covid-19 received by Peru were of China´s Sinopharm in February 2021. President Pedro Castillo visited the Chinese Embassy, even one week before assuming his post, in July 2021. Peru´s President Dina Boluarte met President Xi Jinping in November 2023 during San Francisco APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum) meetings. This year 2024 Peru will host APEC meetings and Chinese President will come to Peru and will visit Chancay port for the opening ceremony of the first stage of the seaport. The last week of February this year,

1. China and Peru relations: China growing presence in Peru.
Peru is home to the second largest destination of Chinese investment in Latin America,
and in 2023 around 36% of Peru exports of goods went to the Chinese market,
consolidating its position as the biggest trade partner of Peru. In this way Peru is the
country with the closer relations with China in Latin America, at least in economic
terms.
To understand the extent of Peru relations with China, it is necessary to know something
about the history of that relations. Besides the fact that Peru has one of the more liberal
regimes for welcoming foreign investment (and plenty of natural resources, especially
in the mining sector), there is a special relationship between both countries. History and
Peru strategic geographical situation in South America also explain China big
involvement in Peru. And there is an economic complementarity between both
countries.
Peru is home to the largest Chinee community in Latin America because from 1849
Chinese labourers began coming to work in the large estate or plantation (hacienda,
where sugar cane and cotton was cultivated)) in Peru, and to collect guano, the
accumulation of bird excrement1
, used as fertilizer.
Peru established diplomatic relations with the People´s Republic of China (PRC) in
1971, being the third in Latin America, after Chile and Cuba, but in 1874 Peru was the
first country in the region to establish diplomatic relations with the Qing Empire.
In 2008 Peru and China signed its Strategic Partnership. The aim with this is not only to
be trade partners, but also to increase and consolidate relations in areas of politics and
cooperation. For example, among different public entities, political parties, civil society.
This included consultation and cooperation in the international forum where both
countries participate.
In 2009 they signed its Free Trade Agreement, the second country in Latin America
after Chile to have one with China, which come into effect in 2010.
In 2013 Peru and China signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This allowed
both countries the people-to-people cooperation in areas technical and cultural.
Relations have increased not only in the trade and investment field but others like the
Chinese cooperation to build the National Emergency Operation Centre2
, an institution
under the National Institute of Civil Defense.
The first travel abroad of Pedro Prado Kuczynski, as Presidente of Peru, was to China in
September 2016
First vaccines against Covid-19 received by Peru were of China´s Sinopharm in
February 2021.
1
https://perusim.com/blog/chinese-cultural-influence-peru/
2
El Peruano: https://www.elperuano.pe/noticia/209577-asociacion-estrategica-con-china

2. President Pedro Castillo visited the Chinese Embassy, even one week before assuming
his post, in July 2021.
Peru´s President Dina Boluarte met President Xi Jinping in November 2023 during San
Francisco APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum) meetings. This year 2024
Peru will host APEC meetings and Chinese President will come to Peru and will visit
Chancay port for the opening ceremony of the first stage of the seaport.
The last week of February this year, Hua Chunying, PRC Assistant Foreign Affairs
Minister, visited Peru.
On foreign trade:
In the year 2023, Peru exports of goods to China amounted to 23.15 billion dollars, or
around 36% of the total sold by Peru abroad. China is from the year 2011 the largest
market for Peru goods. To United States, exports of goods in 2023 totalled 9.12 billion,
being the second largest destination (14% of the total). Peru´s trade in goods (exports
plus imports) with China that year was 31.7% of the total and it was 17.1% with United
States3
. Peru has a large trade surplus with China, of around 10.5 billion dollars in 2023,
accounting for 67.3% of the total trade surplus of Peru that year.
Cooper is the main product exported by Peru, and this represented 35.7% of the total
goods sold abroad in 2023. And China is the main market for copper, accounting for
around 73% of the total that year.
Peru has a Free Trade Agreement with China, in force from 2010, and negotiations are
ongoing to update that agreement.
Given the economic structure of Peru, with no big manufacture sector, and exporting
mostly natural resources, more than 70% of the total, exports to China will continue
increasing.
In foreign investments:
By the end of the year 2020, China has already invested more than thirty billion dollars
in Peru, according to data from its own Embassy in Lima4
. But, according to a study by
the American Enterprise Institute, AEI, published in January this year 2024, between
2005 and 2023 China amount of investment and construction in Peru was thirty-one
billion dollars, being Peru the second largest destination for China´s money in Latin
America, after Brazil5
.
China has invested in several sectors of Peru economy, in the natural resource sector at
the beginning, but now also in infrastructure. In 1992 a Chinese company bought Hierro
Peru, a Peru state owned company that the government began to privatize. This was the
first state owned company sold to the private sector, and for China this represented the
3
MINCETUR: https://www.gob.pe/institucion/mincetur/informes-publicaciones/5158832-reportes-de-
comercio-reporte-mensual-de-comercio-exterior-diciembre-2023
4
Embajada de la Republica Popular China en el Peru. https://pe.china-
embassy.gov.cn/esp/sghd/202008/t20200829_4464356.htm#:~:text=En%20cuanto%20a%20la%20invers
i%C3%B3n,30%20mil%20millones%20de%20d%C3%B3lares.
5
AEI: https://www.aei.org/research-products/report/better-but-not-well-chinas-global-investment-
needs-more-fuel/

3. first time they have invested abroad, outside Asia. This was the first Chinese investment
in Peru. As a result, China presence in the production of some natural resource is quite
important. For example, two Chinese companies have a share of 18.3% of the
production of copper in 2023, and one Chinese company and its subsidiary account for
the total production of iron ore that year6
.
In infrastructure two Chinese investments are worth noting: First, the construction of a
seaport in Chancay, located 55 km north of Lima, which will be the most modern port in
the Latin American South Pacific, and where 60% is owned by the company Cosco
Shipping Corporation. It contemplates a total investment of more than three billion
dollars7
. This port will be the gateway to Peru from Asia and an exchange and
distribution hub for the Pacific south America8
. Peru geographic position, in the centre
of the South American region, make it the entrance for Asians to the Latin American
market, and for the countries of the region, Peru is the exit door to the Pacific.
For its part, China Three Gorges Corporation (CTG) and China Southern Power Grid
International (CSGI), that belong to the same economic group, bought two companies in
Lima, in 2019 and 2023, that generate and distribute electricity for the capital of Peru.
In 2019 China Three Gorges Corporation (through its subsidiary China Yangtze Power
International) bought Sempra Energy International assets in Lima for 3.59 billion
dollars, and in 2023 China Southern Power Grid paid 2.9 billion dollars from Enel
operations. That same Chinese economic group has also bought other regional
companies in the electricity sector of Peru9
. According to the Gestion newspaper, these
two companies, CTG and CSGI, control 55% of the distribution of electricity and 57%
of the (regulated) sale of electricity at the national level10
.
Peru has been a member of the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative since 2019. It is also a
member of the Asian Investment and Infrastructure Bank, AIIB, and gave a contribution
of 154.6 million dollars, the largest in Latin America (only 6 countries in the region
have made contributions to AIIB: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, and
Uruguay), and that amount given by Peru represents 84% of the total given by the
countries of the region11
.
In the technology sector:
At the end of February 2023, the president of the Transportation and Communications
Commission of the Congress of the Republic, together with the vice president of the
Supervision Commission, travelled to Madrid for the Mobile World Congress (MWC)
invited by the company Huawei. (El Comercio newspaper, July 12, 2023). In June 2023,
6
MINEM: Boletín Estadístico Minero Diciembre 2023 https://www.gob.pe/institucion/minem/informes-
publicaciones/5185432-boletin-estadistico-minero-diciembre-2023
7
Nikkei Asia: https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Transportation/COSCO-plants-its-flag-in-South-America-
with-3bn-Peruvian-port
8
RUSI: https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/chinese-investment-peru-
set-reshuffle-maritime-trade-south-america
9
euro.Eseuro: https://euro.eseuro.com/local/2080836.html
10
Gestion newspaper, February 6th
, 2024, page 5
11
AIIB: https://www.aiib.org/en/about-aiib/governance/members-of-bank/index.html

4. 6 congresspeople travelled to China invited by a technology company (El Comercio
newspaper, July 12, 2023).
China is investing in the training of human resources for 5G technology, Huawei in
particular, in universities such as San Marcos National University12
and National
University of Engineering13
, two of the biggest and most prestigious universities in
Peru.
Relations with the academic sector
The majority of those who study or research about China have studied in China, China
increasingly gives more scholarships and finance the participation in conferences. Also,
academic relationships with centres that research on China are mostly with institutions
from that country.
There are 4 Confucius Institutes in Peru, two in Lima and two in the interior of the
country, located one in the North and one in the South. All these Centres are in private
Universities14
.
Peru facing competition from China and the US
There is talk that the two countries are heading towards systemic rivalry, decoupling,
de-risking, and the creation of two parallel supply chains, since one does not want to
depend on the other. And that the competition could affect the rest of the countries if
forced to take sides with one of them. And those two powers could put pressure on the
rest to do just that.
It is advisable not to depend too much on one of them, to diversify, although this is not
easy. Some observers think that Peru now depends on China, for its exports, for
example, and for investment. But given the structure of the Peruvian economy and its
exports, of mostly raw materials, there are not many alternative places to sell them. And
it could be becoming dependent in investment from China for infrastructure projects.
But Peru needs investments in this sector and there are not many sources from which to
get that money.
But this competition, decoupling, can benefit the rest of the countries. For example,
since onshoring is not so feasible for US companies, nearshoring, or friend-shoring, is
favoured. Mexico is benefiting from that. Peru could also benefit if conditions are meet
(more stable political and social environment, economic incentives)
There are opportunities for investment, in railways, highways. Also, in a seaport
(Corio), in the Arequipa region. And there will be Special Economic Zones, in Chancay
(besides the seaport), and in Ancon, a place between Lima and Chancay.
12
UNMSM: https://unmsm.edu.pe/noticias-y-eventos/noticias/noticia-detalle/san-marcos-y-huawei-
promoveran-talento-digital-de-estudiantes-y-docentes
13
Peru 21 newspaper: https://peru21.pe/peru/san-marcos-y-uni-ganan-competencia-mundial-de-
huawei-en-china-estudiantes-de-san-marcos-ganan-competencia-tecnologica-shenzhen-noticia/
14
Carlos Aquino: https://es.slideshare.net/carlosalbertoaquinorodriguez/state-of-asia-and-china-studies-
in-peru