By China News Service reporters Yang Chen and Jiang Xuelin
The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) opened in Nanning on Thursday. The expo comes as the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) 3.0 is being implemented at a faster pace, and marks the first gathering in Nanning of all 11 ASEAN member states since the bloc’s expansion. Four highlights of this year’s expo demonstrate China and ASEAN’s confidence and determination to jointly address global economic and trade challenges, as well as their shared aspiration to promote high-quality regional economic growth.
Highlight 1: All 11 ASEAN members gather to deepen regional cooperation
At this year’s CAEXPO, Timor-Leste is participating for the first time as a co-organizer, bringing together all 11 ASEAN member states for a “family reunion” following the bloc’s expansion. Timor-Leste is not only showcasing its specialty products at the expo, but its chamber of commerce and industry will also join the ASEAN side’s presidium of the China-ASEAN Business Association for the first time. It will participate in the summit and joint meetings of the business communities, helping the country connect with the Chinese market and fully integrate into the China-ASEAN regional economic and trade network.
Several ASEAN-focused events are making their debut during the expo. The Thailand Special Session of “Export to China” aims to help high-quality Thai products enter the Chinese market. A high-level dialogue on the coordinated development of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) will focus on how the two agreements are unlocking benefits for ASEAN, and release an annual report as well as case studies of ASEAN practices in green and digital trade.
Highlight 2: Meeting ASEAN’s actual needs to help businesses seize opportunities
To translate the consensus on CAFTA 3.0 cooperation into tangible and implementable market opportunities for businesses, this year’s expo responds closely to the development needs of ASEAN countries. For the first time, an ASEAN Countries’ Demand Exhibition Area has been established and an ASEAN Demand List has been released to the public. It brings together project and policy information from ASEAN countries in areas including artificial intelligence, industrial park cooperation, smart cities and logistics, and cultural tourism, facilitating on-site matchmaking between ASEAN project owners and Chinese enterprises and research institutions.
A newly established exhibition area for future-oriented technologies and innovation-driven enterprises will showcase cutting-edge technologies and products in aerospace and marine sectors, including satellite navigation, commercial spaceflight and deep-sea operation equipment, to ASEAN audiences. It will also promote advanced technologies with potential for application in ASEAN countries.
Highlight 3: Deepening cooperation in emerging fields to create new engines of economic growth
Expanding high-level opening-up and cooperation into emerging fields such as the digital economy represents a new frontier in China-ASEAN free trade cooperation. For the first time, the AI exhibition area at this year’s CAEXPO has created an “AI Consumer Supermarket,” where more than 40 companies are showcasing 230 artificial intelligence products across eight categories, creating a one-stop consumer experience integrating exhibition, purchase and sales.
The newly established Nanning-ASEAN Community exhibition area focuses on cooperation cases involving the application of AI in ASEAN countries. Through roadshows and competitions, it will promote the adaptation of Chinese AI solutions to local application scenarios in ASEAN, helping build a new engine for high-quality regional economic growth.
The China-ASEAN AI Supply and Demand Matchmaking Conference will also provide trade-matching services through an AI-powered intelligent matchmaking system, facilitating targeted connections between Chinese AI products and solutions and application scenarios in ASEAN countries.
Highlight 4: Expanding new space for economic and trade cooperation to unlock the potential of inbound consumption
Finance provides important support for expanding and upgrading economic and trade ties between China and ASEAN. During the expo, with the support of the People’s Bank of China, the Financial Exhibition Area will feature AI-powered finance, the international expansion of financial technology, and financial opening-up, among other areas, demonstrating how digitalization in finance can empower the upgrading of economic and trade cooperation. During the expo, China and eight ASEAN countries will jointly issue a cooperation initiative to promote coordinated development and the joint export of standards, talent and industries.
In addition, for the first time, the expo has set up an “Departure Tax Refund Service Zone” on site. Overseas businesspeople who shop at any tax-refund store in Nanning can process their tax refunds at the expo venue, further improving the convenience of tax-refund shopping for overseas visitors and unlocking the potential of inbound consumption. Over the years, CAEXPO has become an important practical platform for China and ASEAN to deepen connectivity and cooperation. Through a series of innovative practices, the institutional dividends of CAFTA 3.0 are being transformed into visible and tangible cooperation opportunities, promoting deeper linkages among policies, industries and markets and injecting greater stability and new momentum intoregional and global development. (End)