China, ASEAN conclude negotiations on Version 3.0 China-ASEAN FTA?

(ECNS) -- China and ASEAN countries have completed negotiations on Version 3.0 of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA), China's Ministry of Commerce announced Wednesday, following a special ASEAN-China foreign ministers' meeting held online Tuesday.

Negotiations on Version 3.0 CAFTA  started in November 2022, undergoing nine rounds over nearly two years, and concluded substantially in October 2024.

According to a statement released by the MOC, the CAFTA 3.0 will send a strong message of upholding free trade and open cooperation. China and ASEAN are each other's largest trading, and key investment partners, both steadfast supporters of economic globalization and multilateralism. The CAFTA 3.0 development, as a priority in bilateral economic and trade cooperation, represents a landmark achievement in jointly upholding and advancing free trade, the MOC said.

Against the backdrop of significant global economic challenges, the comprehensive conclusion of negotiations aligns with the prevailing trends of world development and demonstrates the enduring vitality of free trade and open cooperation, which will inject greater certainty into regional and global trade while setting a leading example for nations to pursue openness, inclusiveness, and win-win collaboration, the ministry noted.

The MOC said CAFTA 3.0 will establish an inclusive, modern, comprehensive, and mutually beneficial free trade agreement.

It introduces nine new chapters covering areas such as the digital and green economies, supply chain connectivity, standards and technical regulations, customs procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, competition and consumer protection, support for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, and economic and technical cooperation.

These additions aim to deepen regional economic integration, enhance industrial and supply chain collaboration, and reflect the evolving trade landscape.

The two major developing economies will expand mutual opening-up and comprehensive cooperation in emerging fields and new quality productive forces through CAFTA 3.0.

This will provide critical institutional guarantees for a vast China-ASEAN market and deliver sustained momentum for advancing the China-ASEAN community with a shared future, fostering enduring common prosperity and development, the MOC said.

Next, China and ASEAN will actively advance their respective ratification procedures to formally sign the upgraded CAFTA 3.0 protocol.

(By Zhang Dongfang)