China–Laos Railway helps boost ASEAN–China trade

A corner of the cargo station in Vientiane, part of the Laos–China railway system. (Photo: VNA)

Beijing (VNA) – Cargo volumes handled via the China-Laos Railway reached a record high of 4.506 million tonnes between January and October, up 12.8% year-on-year, China Media Group (CMG) has reported.

Notably, trade in high-tech products between China and ASEAN emerged as another highlight, with exports of items such as new-energy vehicles soaring by more than 285%. Imports of ASEAN fruits and other agricultural products rose by more than 27%.

Total cargo value reached 22.07 billion CNY (3.10 billion USD), up 45.1% year-on-year. An expert noted that this reflects new achievements under China-ASEAN free trade cooperation, according to the report.

Since the China-Laos Railway began operations nearly four years ago, it has handled close to 16 million tonnes of imports and exports worth nearly 70 billion CNY in total.

As a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative, the railway has played an important role in advancing connectivity between China and ASEAN countries, experts noted.

Recently, more positive signals have emerged in China-ASEAN trade openness, including the formal signing on October 28 of the Upgrade Protocol of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) 3.0, marking a new stage in bilateral cooperation, said China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM).

Since 2022, China-ASEAN trade has maintained steady momentum, with the value of imports and exports exceeding 900 billion USD for three consecutive years, the CMG report said. It added that in the first 10 months of 2025, the bilateral trade reached 862.7 billion USD, up 8.2% year-on-year./.

VNA