Since the trade war between the US and China began in 2018, Western companies have been constantly calling for severing ties with China and reducing their dependence on Chinese goods. But, strangely, the same thing is happening in China, causing the Western countries to lose their export markets.
Economists at the Bank of Finland analyzed changes in Chinese imports between 2015 and 2025.
If we look at the change in the import sources of all goods between 2015 and 2025, we will see on the map that China directed itself mainly from the USA to Brazil and Russia. Brazil's main export is soybeans and other agricultural products - but also some minerals (e.g. oil), while Russia focuses on oil and gas exports - but also some agricultural products (for example, Russia accounts for a larger share of China's vegetable oil imports). Both countries are also the largest buyers of Chinese technology products.
Brazil and Russia are the two jewels in Russia's crown, two key countries for Chinese trade.
But we also see that countries in South America and South Asia in general have increased exports to China, which has led to these countries becoming more dependent on demand from China. Meanwhile, after the United States, the biggest declines in exports to China were seen in Germany, South Korea and Japan.