STORY: China-ASEAN Expo injecting impetus into regional economy
DATELINE: Sept. 19, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:59
LOCATION: NANNING, China
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the 20th China-ASEAN Expo
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): ZHU SHENGHUI, Importer of Vietnam Trung Nguyen Coffee
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): WANG ZHENGBO, CEO, Guangxi TWT Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd.
4. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): LI YAN, Chief representative of Beijing Representative Office, Petroliam Nasional Berhad

STORYLINE:

The 20th China-ASEAN Expo concluded on Tuesday in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Nearly 2,000 enterprises had participated in the four-day expo, aiming to tap into the huge market of more than two billion people of China and ASEAN countries.

SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): ZHU SHENGHUI, Importer of Vietnam Trung Nguyen Coffee
"Every year at the China-ASEAN Expo, many businessmen come over to us for cooperation. We have benefited a lot from the China-ASEAN Expo over the years."

According to China's Ministry of Commerce, trade between China and ASEAN countries rose from more than 100 billion U.S. dollars in 2004 to 975.3 billion dollars in 2022. The two sides have been each other's largest trading partners for three years in a row.

Last year, China imported 825,000 tonnes of durian, mainly from Southeast Asian countries, such as Thailand and Vietnam.

The fruit has emerged as a prominent symbol of the booming China-ASEAN cooperation and China's vast market potential.

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): WANG ZHENGBO, CEO, Guangxi TWT Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd.
"More than 300 participants from ASEAN countries and China gathered together, creating business opportunities for the fruit industry and laying foundations for (cooperation) in the future."

The flow of goods in this regional market has continued to benefit from tariff-free policies and expanded market access under the frameworks of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): LI YAN, Chief representative of Beijing Representative Office, Petroliam Nasional Berhad
"RCEP provides energy companies like us with broader space and more in-depth cooperation, and brings us closer to Chinese new energy companies to form strategic partnerships."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Nanning, China.
(XHTV)