Twenty years ago – before a commodities boom made China Brazil’s top trading partner – ties between the two were negligible and few Chinese students studied Brazil’s official language, which has more than 220m native speakers worldwide. Growing numbers of Chinese students are learning Spanish and Portuguese, with the aim of securing good jobs in Latin America, where Beijing has been expanding its presence. Official figures from 2016 revealed 20,000 Chinese undergraduates were studying Spanish, compared to 500 in 1999. The number of foreign language teachers is also growing, according to a report by the China Institute for International Economic Exchanges. Although younger Chinese are benefiting from their country's close ties with Brazil, the US has grown increasingly concerned about Beijing's interest in the region.
Growing numbers of Chinese students are learning Spanish and Portuguese, with the aim of securing good jobs in Latin America, where Beijing has been expanding its presence. Official figures from 2016 revealed 20,000 Chinese undergraduates were studying Spanish, compared to 500 in 1999. The number of foreign language teachers is also growing, according to a report by the China Institute for International Economic Exchanges. Although younger Chinese are benefiting from their country's close ties with Brazil, the US has grown increasingly concerned about Beijing's interest in the region.