Guangxi sees rapid trade growth with ASEAN

Southwest China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, where the China-ASEAN summit is held every year, has seen a rapid increase in trade with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, say local authorities.

Statistics from the Customs Bureau of Nanning, the regional capital, show that Guangxi chalked up 1.83 billion U.S. dollars in trade in 2006, up49 percent over 2005 and more than four times greater than at the beginning of the century.

Guangxi's exports totaled 980 million U.S. dollars last year. Machinery and electrical appliances were the major export products, making up nearly a third of the total.

Imports from ASEAN-member countries were valued at more than 840 million U.S. dollars in 2006, double the previous year. Most of the imported commodities were raw materials such as minerals, fruits, rubber, starch and cooking oil.

Since China-ASEAN relations began 15 years ago, China and ASEAN have become each other's fourth largest trading partner.

China and six ASEAN member countries - Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand- will eliminate tariffs on most products by 2010. China and four other ASEAN member countries - Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam - will do the same in 2015.

The value of preferential duties that have benefited Guangxi is some 200 million yuan (25 million U.S. dollars).

Among ASEAN countries, Vietnam is currently Guangxi's largest trading partner.

Trade by private enterprises in Guangxi topped 1.32 billion U.S. dollars in 2006, up 63.6 percent from the previous year. That accounted for more than 72 percent of the total trade volume.

Source: Xinhua