A cup of coffee brews a story of BRICS cooperation

People visit the 26th China International Fair for Investment and Trade in Xiamen, Sept. 8, 2026. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan)

The 26th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) opened Sept. 8 in Xiamen, a coastal city in southeast China's Fujian Province. For the first time, the fair is being held at a new venue with expanded exhibition space.

This year's fair attracted more than 1,200 delegations from 129 countries and regions, as well as 30 international organizations. Its exhibition space grew to 200,000 square meters up from 120,000 square meters last year.

For the first time, the fair featured Finland and Saudi Arabia as dual guest countries of honor, with Guangdong and Qinghai as dual guest provinces of honor.

This year, coffee has emerged as a new channel for cooperation at the fair, a sign of deepening BRICS ties.

This year's fair coincided with the 52nd anniversary of the establishment of China-Brazil diplomatic relations and the China-Brazil Culture Year, putting BRICS cooperation high on the agenda.

As economic and trade cooperation among BRICS countries continues to deepen, coffee trade has become a vivid example of that partnership. In 2025, China imported 1.12 million bags of Brazilian coffee (60 kilograms per bag), up 19.5 percent year on year, making China one of Brazil's top 10 coffee export destinations.

Chinese coffee chain Luckin Coffee and the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) jointly opened a China-Brazil pavilion at CIFIT that same day, themed around BRICS cooperation. It was the second straight year Luckin served as the fair's exclusive coffee brand. The pavilion highlighted the latest outcomes of China-Brazil cooperation in coffee and of cultural exchange under the BRICS framework.

Brazilian coffee beans are making their way to Chinese consumers and bringing a taste of Brazil's culture with them, said Victor Queiroz, chief representative for the Asia-Pacific Region of ApexBrasil. He noted that Brazil-themed coffee shops have already opened in Shenzhen and Shanghai, with more planned.

"Most of the world's major coffee-growing regions are in BRICS countries," said Guo Jinyi, Luckin's co-founder and CEO.

Guo added that the company sources directly from coffee-producing countries and plans to buy more from fellow BRICS members, including Brazil, Ethiopia, and Indonesia. Those beans will reach Chinese consumers through the company's stores — a move Guo framed as deepening cooperation among BRICS nations.