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China remains ASEAN’s largest trading partner for 17th consecutive year

China-ASEAN trade cooperation is shifting from expansion in scale toward higher-quality growth, with greater emphasis on trade liberalisation, supply-chain connectivity and emerging fields such as the digital and green economies.

Delegates at the press conference (Photo: VNA)
Delegates at the press conference (Photo: VNA)

Beijing (VNA) – China has retained its position as ASEAN’s largest trading partner for the 17th consecutive year, while ASEAN has been China’s largest trading partner for six consecutive years.

At a press briefing in Beijing on September 1 on China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation, Chinese Vice Minister of Commerce Yan Dong said bilateral trade has continued to grow strongly. In 2025, it surpassed 1 trillion USD for the first time, reaching 1.05 trillion USD, up 7.4% year-on-year.
Cooperation in emerging sectors has also delivered notable results, further strengthening China's and ASEAN’s position as dynamic investment partners. Production and supply-chain cooperation has deepened, with both sides supporting multilateralism and free trade and working together to address challenges facing global trade.

Projects under the “Two countries, two industrial parks” framework between China and Malaysia and China and Indonesia, as well as the China-Laos Cross-Border Economic Cooperation Zone, are moving forward. China and ASEAN are also strengthening industrial and value chain connectivity to help keep regional production and supply chains stable and efficient.

Regional economic integration has gained fresh momentum with the signing of the protocol upgrading the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area to Version 3.0. The upgraded FTA expands cooperation into new areas, including the digital and green economies, standards, and production and supply chains.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is also being implemented effectively, while cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, Lancang-Mekong cooperation and China-ASEAN subregional frameworks continues to advance.

Yan said China-ASEAN trade cooperation is shifting from expansion in scale toward higher-quality growth, with greater emphasis on trade liberalisation, supply-chain connectivity and emerging fields such as the digital and green economies.

The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO 23) and China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit are scheduled to take place in Nanning, the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, from September 17–21, focusing on strengthening coordination to maintain stable regional industrial and supply chains.

Under the theme ““CAFTA 3.0 Opportunities, Better Life,” this year’s events are expected to attract more than 2,200 Chinese enterprises and nearly 1,000 ASEAN companies. Around 50 economic and trade activities will be held, covering supply-chain connectivity, investment promotion and business dialogue./.

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