China and Portugal are becoming increasingly important for trade relations with Angola, whilst the United States and France are losing ground in the country’s balance of trade, according to Angolan figures cited by Portuguese bank BPI.

In the March report on the Angolan economy, analysts from BPI noted increased Angolan trade with China and Portugal. China purchases most of Angola’s exports, which are essentially made up of crude oil.

Figures from the Angolan National Statistics Institute (INE) showed that by the end of the fourth quarter of 2012 almost half of Angolan exports were sent to China, which was a rise in comparison to 36 percent of exports at the end of 2011.

The United States, India, Canada, Taiwan and France saw their relative weighting in Angola’s sales drop, a general trend that only South Africa withstood. In terms of Angola’s imports China, Portugal, Brazil and South Africa posted a rise, the United States saw its share drop and France’s share remained the same.

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