When European galleons set sail across the oceans nearly five centuries ago, they didn’t just find the New World, they found fertile ground for trade, setting an early pattern of exchange of Asia’s spice and Latin America’s silver.
Just recently, direct trade ties between the two regions has grown at an astounding rate. From 2000 onwards, trade between Asia and Latin America has grown at an annual average of 20.5%, reaching an estimated $442bn in 2011. Today, Asia’s share of Latin American trade has soared to an unprecedented 21%, only behind the US’s share of 34%.
