The Americas | A match made in the Middle Kingdom

Brazil courts China as its Musk feud erupts again

Xi Jinping, China’s leader, spies a chance to draw Brazil closer

People hold Brazilian and Chinese flags.
Photograph: Getty Images
|São Paulo

The re-election of Donald Trump on November 5th rather overshadowed Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s big bash. Lula, as Brazil’s president is known, hosted the G20 leaders’ summit in Rio de Janeiro on November 18th and 19th. Heads of state from 19 of the world’s largest economies, as well as the European and African Unions, convened to talk shop.

Explore more

This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “The best of friends”

From the November 23rd 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Discover more

Uruguay's centre-left presidential candidate Yamandu Orsi.

Is Uruguay too stable for its own good?

The new president must deal with serious problems with growth, education and crime

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to members of the media.

Bolsonaro’s bid to regain Brazil’s presidency may end in prison

Brazilian police have accused some of his backers of involvement not just in a coup, but in an assassination plot


A worker holds a salmon inside a salmon hatchery in Puerto Montt, Chile.

The mafia’s latest bonanza: salmon heists

Fish farming is big business in Chile. Stealing fish is, too


Parlacen, a bizarre parliament, is a refuge for bent politicians

A seat in the Central American body offers immunity from prosecution

Brazil’s gangsters have been getting into politics

They want friendly officials to help them launder money

Justin Trudeau’s dodgy defence promise

Canada is about to receive a MAGA mauling



Discover more

Elon Musk looks on during a conference.

Elon Musk’s xAI goes after OpenAI

The fight is turning nasty

Elon Musk speaks at the Milken Institute's Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

What to read to understand Elon Musk

The world’s richest man was shaped by science fiction


Elon Musk raises his arms to supporters at a rally in Madison Square Garden, New York

Elon Musk’s transformation, in his own words

Our analysis of 38,000 posts on X reveal a changed man


Elon Musk is Donald Trump’s disrupter-in-chief

The entrepreneur will be let loose on America’s government

The World Ahead Science & technology in 2025

Space missions to watch in 2025

Humans may fly around the Moon, and robots will explore new frontiers