RCEP expands China's and ASEAN's economic and trade "circle of friends"

On September 17, the 19th China-ASEAN Expo entered its second day. Inside the National Pavilion of South Korea, a special partner of this expo, Ding Xue, the Greater China representative of the Korean skincare brand Dalangxi, was busy attracting visitors while promoting products on online platforms.

"This is our first time participating in the China-ASEAN Expo. Our products are all imported from South Korea. Now, thanks to the policy dividends brought by the RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) coming into effect, import tariffs have been correspondingly lowered, enhancing the price competitiveness of our products," said Ding Xue.

On the 16th, the 19th China-ASEAN Expo, themed "Sharing New RCEP Opportunities, Boosting China-ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0," opened in Nanning, Guangxi. This year marks the beginning of the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership and the year RCEP came into force, attracting many new friends to "join the circle" at the Expo.

Following After serving as the special partner of the 12th China-ASEAN Expo in 2015, South Korea once again holds this role this year, with numerous South Korean enterprises participating. According to Lee Yun-sik, Deputy Director of the Guangzhou Office of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), 18 Korean companies are exhibiting in the Korean Pavilion, and products from another 127 Korean companies are also on display, totaling nearly 250 types of Korean products showcased at the Expo.

"Guangxi is the only Chinese province with land and sea connections to ASEAN. More Korean companies hope to find and expand business opportunities to enter the ASEAN market by participating in the China-ASEAN Expo," said Lee Yun-sik.

　　Ahn Duk-geun, Minister for Trade of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea stated in his opening address at this Expo on the 16th that over the past 30 years since diplomatic relations were established between South Korea and China, the two countries have maintained close economic and trade cooperation; China is South Korea's largest trading partner, and South Korea is China's third largest trading partner. At the same time, cooperation between South Korea and ASEAN is also very strong.

"The free trade agreements between South Korea, China, and ASEAN strongly support economic cooperation among all parties. With RCEP, which all three parties have joined, officially coming into effect this year, it provides even broader opportunities for regional multilateral cooperation," said Ahn Duk-geun.

RCEP was signed by the ten ASEAN countries, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. Its total population, economic volume, and total trade volume account for approximately 30% of the global total, earning it the title of "the world's largest free trade area." Since its entry into force on January 1st this year, RCEP has continuously released trade dividends, showing evident results in boosting foreign trade growth among member countries and continuously expanding the economic and trade "circle of friends" between China and ASEAN.

　　Data shows that in the first 8 months, the total trade value between China and ASEAN was 4.09 trillion yuan, a 14% increase, accounting for 15% of China's total foreign trade. China has maintained its position as ASEAN's largest trading partner for 13 consecutive years, and ASEAN's position as China's largest trading partner has been further consolidated. Among these, China's imports and exports to the other 14 RCEP member countries increased by 7.5% year-on-year.

　　In Thailand, under the RCEP framework, from January to April alone, Thai exporters applied for certificates of origin totaling US$204 million; concerning imports utilizing RCEP preferential policies, the total value of Thai imported goods was approximately US$72.34 million.

"RCEP is a win-win agreement for all parties, which will accelerate regional economic integration, attract investment, expand markets, and strengthen supply chains to address global economic uncertainties. Since RCEP came into effect, enterprises in both Thailand and China have mutually benefited," said Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, in his video address at the opening ceremony of the China-ASEAN Expo.

　　Guangxi is an important gateway for China's opening-up and cooperation with ASEAN, where the policy dividends brought by RCEP, such as market access and customs clearance facilitation, are particularly evident.

　　Data from Nanning Customs shows that in the first 8 months of this year, Nanning Customs cumulatively issued 1,165 RCEP certificates of origin, valued at 541 million yuan. In August alone, Guangxi's imports and exports to RCEP member countries reached 32.14 billion yuan, a 22.7% increase, showing consecutive month-on-month growth for 5 months. Among these, imports and exports to South Korea grew significantly by 68.6%.

"The numerous opportunities brought by RCEP will promote the development of enterprises within the region and facilitate the seamless integration of regional and global economic recovery," said Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob. He added that RCEP offers broader market access for enterprises from all parties and opportunities to improve regional supply chains, diversify production networks, and help businesses reduce operating costs.

Source: Xinhua Net