To deepen cooperation between China and Southeast Asia and gather overseas Chinese (attention from the overseas Chinese community)

According to data from the General Administration of Customs of China, in the first four months of 2025, ASEAN will continue to maintain its position as China's largest trading partner, with a total trade value of 2.38 trillion yuan between China and ASEAN, an increase of 9.2%.
The friendly exchanges between China and Southeast Asian countries have a long history, and Southeast Asia is one of the areas with the highest concentration of overseas Chinese. For a long time, overseas Chinese businessmen and businessmen in Southeast Asia have actively contributed to promoting regional economic and trade cooperation by leveraging their advantages in integrating China and foreign countries. How to leverage the power of overseas Chinese to promote cooperation between China and Southeast Asian countries? This newspaper interviewed scholars in relevant fields and overseas Chinese from Southeast Asia.

Bilateral cooperation brings benefits to the people

▼ News

In Kuantan Port, Malaysia, the whistle of the "Haifeng Pacific" ship sounded as it sailed north towards the Beibu Gulf Port in Guangxi, China.

With the official opening of the Kuantan Port Beibu Gulf Port cold chain boutique route, Malaysia's specialty fruits and vegetables directly reach the Chinese market, and China's fertilizers, daily necessities, etc. also enter the Southeast Asian market through this route. A cold chain air route contains vibrant vitality for economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.

In recent years, China and Southeast Asian countries have carried out extensive and in-depth cooperation in multiple fields. Not long ago, China signed over a hundred cooperation agreements with Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia, covering various fields such as industrial chain, supply chain, digital economy, culture and sports, human resources development, customs inspection and quarantine.

▼ Testimonials

Liu Shaoyi, Director of the Thai Chinese Business Center: In 2016, I came from Xinyang, Henan to Bangkok, Thailand to start a business. At that time, Thailand's exports to China mainly included latex pillows, cosmetics, etc. Now, the trade scale of fruits, rice, rubber and other products between the two sides continues to expand. I have seen more and more Chinese brand new energy vehicles on the streets of Bangkok, with over ten Chinese car companies setting up factories in Thailand.

During my entrepreneurial period in Thailand, I established the Thai Chinese Business Center, which focuses on cross-border economic and trade services, policy consulting, and resource docking, assisting Sino Thai enterprises in cooperation in fields such as new energy and intelligent manufacturing. We not only help Chinese companies invest and develop in Thailand, but also assist in building an environmentally friendly supply chain system that covers supporting industries such as circuit boards and rubber tires. Last year, we successfully facilitated the landing of a Chinese high-tech enterprise in Thailand, and it only took 5 months from initial understanding of policies to final production.

Chairman of the Malacca Teochew Association in Malaysia, Huang Ruilei: As a Chinese, although I work and live in Malaysia, I always return to China when I have time. A noticeable change I have felt in recent years is that the exchanges between Malaysian and Chinese people have become more convenient. With the implementation of the visa free policy, I can now return to China by buying a plane ticket on the same day.

I am involved in multiple industries in Malaysia, including real estate development and foreign trade, such as importing Chinese agricultural products into Malaysia. In recent years, with the opening up and closer economic and trade exchanges between the two countries, the shipping time has gradually shortened. Previously, importing goods from China required purchasing separate containers, and shipping by sea took more than half a month. Nowadays, cargo ships come and go frequently every day, and container shipping is convenient, taking only 7 to 10 days to deliver. Air transportation also has daily flights, which is very convenient.

Yuan Xiaofeng, founding president of Anhui Enterprise Federation of Vietnam China General Chamber of Commerce: In recent years, cooperation between China and Vietnam in various fields has entered the fast lane. Vietnamese coffee, coconut and other products are highly favored by Chinese consumers. The Hanoi Light Rail Line 2 constructed by Chinese enterprises facilitates local people's travel, and projects such as photovoltaic and garbage power generation ensure Vietnam's energy supply. These collaborations have benefited the people of both countries. We look forward to the two countries continuing to leverage their complementary advantages and deepen cooperation in emerging fields.

Injecting new momentum into deepening regional economic integration

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In recent years, bilateral economic and trade exchanges between China and ASEAN have maintained a good growth momentum. In 2024, the total trade value between China and ASEAN reached 6.99 trillion yuan, an increase of 9.0%, accounting for 15.9% of China's total foreign trade value. ASEAN has remained China's largest trading partner for five consecutive years, and China has maintained its position as ASEAN's largest trading partner for 16 consecutive years.

In October 2024, substantial results were achieved in the negotiations for upgrading the China ASEAN Free Trade Area version 3.0. Chongyang Institute of Finance of Renmin University of China recently released a research report entitled "Underrated Malaysia: Strategic Value of Southeast Asia Hub and the Path to Deepening China Malaysia Relations", which calls for Malaysia to play its coordinating role as the rotating presidency of ASEAN, and actively promote the implementation of the China ASEAN Free Trade Area Version 3.0 and the upgrading of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP).

▼ Viewpoint

Tang Zhimin, Director of the China ASEAN Research Center at Thailand's Charoen Pok é mon School of Management: The 3.0 version of the China ASEAN Free Trade Area sends an important signal to promote the construction of an open world economic system, providing institutional support for promoting trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, and maintaining regional supply chain stability. The China ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 version will provide more convenience for both sides to strengthen cooperation in areas such as digital infrastructure construction and green industry development.

To promote stable and far-reaching economic globalization, it is necessary to involve more countries and people in development and share the dividends. ASEAN and China have a total population of over 2 billion. In this large market, strengthening the integration of various links from production to sales, forming complementary advantages, is conducive to enhancing the momentum of regional common development and prosperity.

Yang Yanmei, Chairman of the Malaysian Institute for Strategic Analysis and Policy Research: RCEP provides a foundation for Southeast Asian countries and China to build a stable, resilient, and forward-looking regional cooperation mechanism. With the recent joint statement between Malaysia and China on building a high-level strategic China Malaysia community with a shared future, cooperation between the two sides under the RCEP framework will enter a new stage.

The potential for cooperation between Malaysia and China in emerging fields is enormous. RCEP provides new channels for cooperation between Malaysia and China in emerging fields such as digital economy, green low-carbon technology, and artificial intelligence. China's breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, algorithms, and large-scale models inject new momentum into regional smart governance and the development of advanced manufacturing industries; In terms of green energy, Malaysia and China also have relevant cooperation in areas such as photovoltaics, electric vehicles, and energy storage systems. Malaysia and China can continue to promote technology cooperation projects in Malaysia, such as establishing AI algorithm research and development centers, green technology pilot parks, and electric vehicle industry clusters.

Both sides can also promote the establishment of a regional technical standard mutual recognition mechanism and the construction of an RCEP trade facilitation center; Establishing innovation and talent mobility mechanisms under the RCEP framework, including promoting mutual visits of scientific and technological talents, jointly building artificial intelligence joint laboratories, establishing a technology visa facilitation system, jointly building research platforms and higher education cooperation mechanisms, etc., injecting sustained vitality into the construction of regional innovation ecology.

Better leverage the bridging role of Southeast Asian overseas Chinese

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Recently, the large-scale cultural and artistic evening party of "Guangxi March 3, 2025- Global Broadcasting of Rural Sounds" was held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The event is supported and guided by the Guangxi Overseas Chinese Federation and the Consulate General of China in Ho Chi Minh City, and hosted by the Guangxi Enterprise Federation of the Vietnam China Chamber of Commerce. At present, the Guangxi Enterprise Federation of the Vietnam China Chamber of Commerce has 78 supervisory units and nearly 300 member enterprises.

Not long ago, more than 200 Malaysian and Chinese youths participated in the English song and dance training course organized by the Federation of Teochew Associations in Malaysia. The training content included the cultural origins of English song and dance, makeup techniques, and performance movements. Since its establishment in the 1930s, the Federation of Teochew Associations in Malaysia has adhered to the principles of connecting with local communities, promoting mutual assistance, caring for the people of the area, and taking care of the local community. It has over 50 associations with hundreds of thousands of members.

▼ Viewpoint

Huang Ruilei: In recent years, many Chinese companies have come to Malaysia to develop their business. My chamber of commerce has been actively assisting many Chinese enterprises for many years, sharing information on enterprise application processes, related risks, etc., providing convenience for the implementation of enterprise projects, and establishing good cooperative relationships with Chinese counterparts. As Chinese businessmen, we hope to help more Chinese counterparts find the right people and do the right things.

Liang Haiming, President of the "the Belt and Road" Research Institute of Hainan University: In order to better play the role of bridge for Southeast Asian overseas Chinese, the first is to build a large database of Southeast Asian overseas Chinese, integrate investment, education, culture, chambers of commerce and other information resources, and provide support for policy formulation, project cooperation and talent introduction. The second is to build a cooperation platform and promote the docking of projects between China and Southeast Asia. Encourage local governments, industrial parks, business associations, and Southeast Asian Chinese businessmen to establish regular cooperation channels and promote project cooperation in key areas such as infrastructure, manufacturing, and digital economy. The third is to promote joint investment between Chinese and Chinese capital. Encourage Chinese enterprises to localize their development, utilize the market network and social resources of Chinese enterprises, and improve the efficiency of project implementation. The fourth is to strengthen cultural exchanges and youth development. Deepen cultural exchanges between China and ASEAN, expand the study abroad program for Chinese students, and attract outstanding Chinese youth to participate in internships and research projects in Chinese enterprises. The fifth is to support overseas Chinese enterprises to enter emerging fields such as new energy, intelligent manufacturing, and cross-border e-commerce, and provide technical cooperation, digital training, and green development policy support.

Liu Shaoyi: Looking forward to cooperation between China and Southeast Asian countries, I am very optimistic about the prospects of cooperation between the two sides in areas such as agricultural trade, manufacturing, new energy, and digital economy. We are actively building a digital service platform, digitizing services such as policy interpretation and process tracking, and focusing on cross-border e-commerce and green economy. We are still promoting the 'Digital Twin Factory' project, creating a new 'going global' model for Chinese enterprises that prioritizes digital technology and follows up with physical entities. The Thai Chinese Business Center will continue to play the role of a "super connector", making technology transfer more precise and resource matching more intelligent. At the same time, it will actively participate in various friendly cooperation affairs between Thailand and China, opening up the next 50 years of shared peace and common prosperity for Thailand and China, and leveraging the new achievements of young Chinese businesses.