Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – ASEAN and China will seek their leaders’ approval of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) 3.0 Agreement in October 2025, following a consensus reached at the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-58) and Post Ministerial Conferences (PMC) held last week in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
ASEAN-China relations: comprehensive and dynamic
ASEAN and China established relations in 1991 and elevated ties to a Strategic Partnership in 2003. In November 2018, both sides adopted the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership Vision 2030.
A milestone was reached in November 2021 when a virtual summit marking 30 years of ties resulted in a Joint Statement establishing a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The partnership is facilitated through various mechanisms, including annual summits, the ASEAN Post-Ministerial Conference with China (PMC+1), and specialised ministerial-level meetings.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan called ASEAN-China dialogue one of ASEAN’s most substantive relationships, rooted in mutual trust, shared interests, and deepening economic interdependence. Over the past three decades, ASEAN-China dialogue has contributed remarkably to peace, stability, and prosperity in Southeast Asia, he said.
Bilateral trade has flourished, with ASEAN and China remaining each other’s largest trade partners in recent years. In 2024, two-way trade reached 770.94 billion USD, a 10.61% increase from the previous year. In the first five months of 2025 alone, ASEAN accounted for 16.8% of China’s total trade, with a volume of 3.02 trillion CNY (420.5 billion USD), according to the General Administration of Customs China.
The ACFTA, launched in 2000, became one of the world’s largest free trade agreements by 2010, when Version 1.0 eliminated tariffs on over 90% of traded goods. Spanning a market of more than 2 billion people, ACFTA aims to reduce trade barriers, foster economic integration, and strengthen regional supply chains.
Talks to upgrade to ACFTA 2.0 began in 2014, with a revised protocol signed in 2015 and fully effective by 2018. At the 25th ASEAN-China Summit in Cambodia in November 2022, leaders greenlit negotiations for ACFTA 3.0, targeting completion by late 2024.
ACFTA 3.0: A gateway to the future
After nine rounds of talks spanning two years, ACFTA 3.0 was largely finalised in October 2024. In May 2025, trade ministers from ASEAN and China sealed the deal during a virtual Special Economic and Trade Ministers’ Meeting. At last week’s ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, both sides agreed to present the pact for leaders’ approval in October, with formal ratification and signing expected by the end of 2025.
China’s Ministry of Commerce hailed ACFTA 3.0 as a “gateway” to a vast, integrated regional market. The agreement introduces nine new chapters covering digital economy, green economy, supply chain connectivity, technical standards and regulations, customs procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, competition, consumer protection, support for small and medium enterprises, and economic and technological cooperation.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that China and ASEAN have reached a new five-year action plan outlining more than 40 areas of bilateral cooperation, further solidifying the partnership. Meanwhile, Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan spotlighted the agreement’s timeliness, noting that it comes at a time when ASEAN seeks to foster economic cooperation and resilience amid a volatile global trade environment. ACFTA 3.0 will elevate ASEAN-China relations to new heights, he said.
ACFTA 3.0 is expected to deliver substantial added value by integrating key areas such as digital economy, green economy, and supply chain connectivity. It also sends a clear message in support of free trade and open cooperation.
Experts viewed the finalisation of ACFTA 3.0 as a testament to the strength of free trade and open cooperation in a challenging global economic landscape. The agreement underscores ASEAN and China’s commitment to openness, inclusiveness and mutual benefit, offering a model for regional collaboration./.
