SHANGHAI, April 18 (Xinhua) -- Amid growing global trade uncertainties, Malaysian and Chinese experts have called for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China to deepen economic cooperation, leverage their combined super-sized markets, and drive regional integration to a higher level.
"It is very important for like-minded countries in ASEAN and China to continue strengthening the international rules-based trading order, resisting to a rising tide of protectionism by strengthening regional collaboration and integration," Low Kian Chuan, chairman of Malaysia China Business Council, said in a speech at the ASEAN-China Seminar on Super-sized Markets & Connectivity held recently in Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia.
Low said that Malaysia, as the chair of ASEAN this year, will be committed to steering ASEAN in achieving stronger regional integration, inclusive and sustainable development through the development of good neighbourly and friendly relations, and mutually beneficial dialogues.
"The signing of ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) 3.0 this year will be a key priority for deepening regional economic integration," he said, adding that both sides must continue to emphasize that the relations between ASEAN and China would "go to another level of holistic cooperation in almost all fields."
China and ASEAN have built close economic and trade ties since the launch of ACFTA 1.0 in January 2010, with rapid growth in bilateral trade and investment. The two sides have become each other's largest trading partners for five consecutive years.
Despite concerns over global trade, China's trade value with the ASEAN bloc rose 7.1 percent from a year earlier in the first quarter of 2025, according to the customs data.
Wong Chun Wai, chairman of Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama), believed that "it is more important than ever" to strengthen the economic partnership between ASEAN and China amid rising global trade uncertainties.
"By pooling their vast consumer bases and production capabilities, ASEAN and China can jointly build super-sized markets, set up regional supply chains and deepen intra-regional trade, which would help sustain growth in the region," Wong said.
As companies around the world rethink their dependencies on any single market, the combined economic weight of ASEAN and China provides an attractive alternative, he added.
Low believed that there are great cooperation prospects ahead between ASEAN and China in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) development, digital economy, green economy, and global value chains restructuring.
"China and ASEAN should further strengthen sincere and mutual beneficial cooperation as well as forge stronger regional integration, so as to harness the promise of digital technologies as they pursue growth and prosperity, sharing the dividends of technological progress," he said.
Lee Boon Chye, chairman of Bioeconomy Corporation and advisor for Centre of Regional Strategic Studies (CROSS) in Malaysia, urged ASEAN countries to tap into China's growing strength in AI innovation and forge stronger research ties with the country.
Noting that around 60 percent of ASEAN-China trade is already being conducted with zero tariffs, Lee said the two sides also need to strengthen their economic integration by expanding zero-tariff arrangements further and seeking more cooperation in supply chains.
ASEAN has become a hotspot for the overseas expansion of China's emerging industries, particularly electric vehicles, lithium batteries and solar power in recent years, as leading Chinese companies boost investments across the region.
China's automotive giants like BYD, Great Wall Motors, SAIC-GM-Wuling, and Geely have established production bases in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, boosting local industrial capacity and competitiveness.
Emory Qi Feng, managing director of SAIC Motor Malaysia, said at the seminar that there's huge potential for China and ASEAN to work more closely in advancing the adoption of new energy vehicles, especially in areas like charging infrastructure, renewable energy integration, and public education.
At the same platform, Zhu Jiaqi, deputy general manager of the investment management department of Shenergy Group, a leading integrated energy group based in Shanghai, China, said that Shenergy looks forward to deepening cooperation with ASEAN countries in upstream oil and gas exploration, and the green and low-carbon energy transition.
During the seminar, China Economic Information Service (CEIS) Shanghai headquarters, a subsidiary for the economic information services of Xinhua News Agency, unveiled a research report on ASEAN-China super-sized markets and connectivity with Xinhua Institute.
The report asserts that the co-developed China-ASEAN super-sized markets of over 2 billion people will bring tangible benefits to the region by generating unprecedented scale economies through industrial cluster effects, powering sustainable regional growth via the expansion of intra-regional trade, and establishing institutional safeguards against protectionist measures in global trade.
With the upcoming signing of the ACFTA 3.0 protocol this year, the China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation is poised to enter a new era, characterized by higher standards, deeper connectivity and broader integration, injecting fresh momentum into regional and global economic development, according to the report.
As a part of the China-ASEAN Media and Think Tank Forum, the seminar, co-organized by CEIS and CROSS, brought together approximately 200 representatives from more than 160 media outlets, think tanks, government agencies and enterprises across ASEAN countries and China. (Contributed by Gao Pan, edited by Yu Huichen with Xinhua Silk Road, yuhuichen@xinhua.org)
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