The Blip Report for Tuesday, November 12th 2024
The Coming Transcontinental Railway
I read a story that Xi Jinping, the philosopher-president of China, is going to visit Peru this week - ‘Xi to attend APEC meeting, G20 summit, pay state visits to Peru, Brazil’, that’s about the growing friendship between China and Peru, and that:
“ China is Peru's largest trading partner, number one export market and number one source of imports.”
And I read a story about China’s work with Peru - ‘Chancay Port, a vindication of China-Peru win-win cooperation under BRI’, that talks about the importance of this new port in transforming Peru into a major trade hub, not only for Peru, but for all of South America:
“Strengthening infrastructure connectivity is an efficient approach to promote China-Peru economic and trade cooperation, which will help the Latin American country transfer its geographical advantages into tangible benefits …
the project will have a multiplier effect, serving as a key regional hub to provide new routes for other countries to enter Asia-Pacific markets”,
but especially its importance for Brazil, because:
“Nearly half of Brazilian exports are of agribusiness, with China being the top destination between July 2023 and July 2024.
If Brazil gained access to the Pacific Ocean, potentially through ports in Peru, such as the Chancay Port, the shift could significantly increase Brazil's agricultural exports to China. The route would become shorter, faster, and less costly …”
And so then I read a story about South America’s Trans-continental Railway project from Peru to Brazil, that China is helping with !!! - Brazil–Peru Transcontinental Railway, that would change the course of history for both Peru and Brazil.
And then I re-read that first story, that Xi is not only going to visit Peru but he’s also going to visit Brazil too!!!
But then I read a fascinating story that shows that this is not only about economics but it’s also about culture - ‘Exhibit highlights similarities of ancient Shu and Inca civilizations’, that there’s a new exhibit in the Inca Museum, in Cusco, that:
“[weaves] a compelling narrative of the spiritual connections and diverse allure that link these two ancient cultures [the Shu and the Inca] despite being separated by oceans.”
And I thought that just as the Belt and Road Initiative is showing how the distance across the ocean between China and South America is not that far, that this exhibit is showing that the ocean was not that far, even back in ancient times!