Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi on Friday praised the Uruguay-China Business and Investment Forum in Shanghai as a key platform to expand trade ties, as 350 officials and entrepreneurs gathered to promote Uruguay as a reliable destination for investment.
In his keynote address, Orsi highlighted Uruguay's role as a gateway to South America and expressed welcome to Chinese investors to look beyond the market toward long-term strategic partnership.
"Built on close institutional cooperation, Chinese companies are already operating in Uruguay across logistics, biotechnology, telecommunications, finance, and industry. I invite you to see Uruguay not merely as a market, but as a strategic partner, a reliable platform, and a gateway to South America," said Orsi at the forum.
China has been Uruguay's largest trading partner for more than a decade, with exports surpassing 3 billion U.S. dollars in 2025. That momentum was evident in Shanghai, where the forum's packed schedule of business matchmaking reflected growing demand for Uruguayan products.
The meat industry, in particular, seized the opportunity to deepen its foothold in China, after beef exports rose 16 percent year on year in 2025.
"Trust is a good word to signify our relationship. We are complementary countries. We can offer food and we can receive many kinds of products from China. We should incorporate more and more technology in our production," said Gaston Scayola, president of the National Meat Institute of Uruguay.
Beyond trade, cooperation is expanding into broader sectors, especially in sci-tech driven innovation areas and people-to people exchanges, according to Uruguayan officials.
"Not only commercial and products are very important, but incorporating science, technology, and innovation dimensions are very, very important for the future and the complementary capacity between China and Uruguay," said Miguel Sierra, president of the National Agricultural Research Institute of Uruguay.
"That's a key part of the strategic partnership that we have with China, where we do not only want to promote trade and business, but we also want to promote cooperation in other areas that are bit more sophisticated than trade, for example, innovation, science, technology, and also people-to-people connection," said Lucia Rodriguez, agricultural officer at the Uruguayan Embassy in China.
Orsi paid a seven-day state visit from February 1 to 7, at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, coinciding with the 38th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
Uruguay's Orsi lauds Shanghai forum as gateway for trade, cooperation with China
