This study examines the impact of China’s dominant position among the BRIS countries, namely Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa. Particularly, by using a dynamic factor model estimated over the period 1995Q2-2009Q4, it investigates how supply and demand shocks from China are transmitted to these economies. The results show that China’s supply shocks are more important than its demand shocks. Supply shocks produce positive and signifiant output responses in all BRIS countries. International trade is an important channel for the transmission of shocks across China and BRIS countries indicating that supply and demand shocks in China do not have similar e¤ects on the BRIS countries and therefore they require different policy responses.