Developing giants of East and West catch global attention

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's visit to China, which began on Wednesday, is getting a lot of attention, as the leaders of the largest developing countries in the Eastern and Western hemispheres renew ties.

This is Lula's third state visit to China and his first to a country outside Latin America since he took over as Brazilian president in January. China-Brazil ties have seen leapfrog development during Lula's presidency in the past. China became Brazil's largest trading partner in 2009, a position Brazil has held for 14 consecutive years. Brazil is the first Latin American country whose trade with China has exceeded $100 billion.

Economic issues are on top of Lula's agenda. Given his commitment to re-industrializing Brazil, China's high-quality development and opening-up at a higher level will provide win-win opportunities for Brazil. A large number of Brazilian officials and businesspeople have arrived in Beijing ahead of Lula. Brazil's minister of agriculture and animal husbandry said in an interview that "we need to have more partnerships with China to increase our capacity and production".

In late March, the Brazilian government said it had reached an agreement with China to settle trade in home currencies, which, if realized, will avoid the interference of the US dollar.

Bilateral cooperation between China and Brazil is deepening and their peoples are getting closer. In addition to football, samba and barbecue, Chinese people, especially the young, now know more about Brazil.

For example, Brazilian capoeira has been rapidly promoted in China in recent years and Brazilian flip-flops, drinks, coffee, and more have become popular on Chinese e-commerce platforms. Brazilians' knowledge about China also goes beyond the Great Wall and kung fu. For example, traditional Chinese medicines are now popular in Brazil.

Scientific and technological cooperation is another important part of China-Brazil ties.

In the face of a volatile international situation, China and Brazil both oppose hegemony and support true multilateralism. As the largest developing countries in the Eastern and Western hemispheres, the ever-developing China-Brazil relations benefit not only both sides but also the whole world. Hopefully, under the leadership of their heads of state, mutually beneficial and friendly cooperation between the two countries will be further upgraded and make greater contributions to regional and world stability and prosperity.