In the bilateral context, Argentina reached an understanding with Beijing to boost its exports to China from $3 billion to $7 billion over five years; China became Chile’s second largest trading partner after the United States in 2004, with the bilateral trade volume surging 52 percent to $5.5 billion. In November 2005, China and Chile signed a free trade agreement, the first such agreement for China in Latin America; and similar negotiations are under way with other countries.