Residents relax and enjoy the beach under the sun, as cranes build Chancay Port in the background in Lima, Peru, on October 29, 2024. Photo: VCG Giant containers pile up at the newly developed Chancay Port, Chancay, Peru, on October 24, 2024. Photo: IC

The port opening in Chancay underscores China’s growing clout in a region that once looked primarily to the United States for economic opportunity.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Peruvian counterpart Dina Boluarte inaugurated a $1.3 billion port that could transform South American trade with Asia just as Beijing prepares for a potential trade war with the US.

Chinese President Xi Jinping reviews the honour guard alongside Peru's President Dina Boluarte after arriving at the government palace, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit,