China Africa economic and trade cooperation continues to make new progress

Economic Daily Beijing, May 21st (Reporter Feng Qiyu) The 4th China Africa Economic and Trade Expo will be held in Changsha from June 12th to 15th. At the press conference held by the State Council Information Office on the 21st, Assistant Minister of Commerce Tang Wenhong introduced that this is one of the most important exchange activities between China and African countries in the field of economy and trade this year.

In recent years, new progress has been made in China Africa economic and trade cooperation. In 2024, the trade volume between China and Africa reached 295.6 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 4.8%, setting a new historical high for the fourth consecutive year. China has maintained its position as Africa's largest trading partner for 16 consecutive years. Among them, China imported $116.8 billion from Africa, an increase of 6.9%, and exported $178.8 billion to Africa, an increase of 3.5%.

Investment momentum continues to accumulate. In recent years, Chinese enterprises have increased their construction and investment in various economic and trade parks in Africa, promoted cooperation in the China Africa industrial chain, and made important contributions to local taxation, employment, and export earnings. For example, in Egypt, the Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone established by Chinese companies has formed industrial clusters such as textiles, glass, building materials, and home appliances, becoming a successful case of supporting industrialization in Africa; In Tanzania, the East African Trade and Logistics Industrial Park built by Chinese enterprises has attracted more than 430 small and medium-sized enterprises to settle in, and after full operation, it will create over 20000 job opportunities for the local area.

Cooperation in emerging fields continues to deepen. In terms of digital economy, Chinese companies have built multiple large data centers and provided cloud computing services for Africa. 5G technology has been widely applied in mining and urban management in Africa. In terms of green development, the cumulative installed capacity of photovoltaic power stations constructed through China Africa cooperation exceeds 1.5 gigawatts, which can meet the electricity needs of millions of households in Africa. In terms of financial cooperation, Egypt and the African Export Import Bank have successfully issued RMB "Panda Bonds" in China in 2023 and 2025 respectively.

Last year, China announced that it would grant 100% tariff free treatment to the least developed countries with diplomatic relations. Shen Xiang, Director of the West Asia and Africa Department of the Ministry of Commerce, introduced that since the implementation of the zero tariff policy on December 1 last year until March this year, China's imports from the least developed countries in Africa have reached 21.42 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 15.2%. China continues to expand its market opening to African countries. Since the conclusion of the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation of the Forum on China Africa Cooperation in 2024, 22 kinds of agricultural products from 18 African countries have gained new access to China. At the same time, a "African Product Zone" was established at the 7th China International Import Expo to organize domestic professional buyers to negotiate with African exhibitors and help African characteristic high-quality products explore the Chinese market.

In recent years, the economies of African countries have steadily developed, and the overall business environment has continuously improved. Chinese companies have also significantly increased their willingness to invest in Africa. According to statistics, in the past five years, Chinese enterprises have maintained an average annual investment of over 3 billion US dollars in non direct investment, with investment projects covering a wide range of fields. At the same time, China's investment in Africa has become more diversified, with private enterprises becoming the driving force for investment cooperation in Africa, accounting for over 70% of China's total investment in Africa.

Shen Xiang stated that currently, the Ministry of Commerce has signed investment promotion and protection agreements with 34 African countries, established investment and economic cooperation working groups with 14 African countries, and provided institutional and mechanism guarantees for the high-quality development of China Africa investment cooperation. Next, the Ministry of Commerce will take the implementation of the "Ten Major Partner Actions" as the main line, closely coordinate and cooperate with the African side, and promote the deep integration of China Africa industrial and supply chains.