Reference News Network, September 22 report - According to the South China Morning Post website on September 20, the China-ASEAN Expo being held in Nanning, Guangxi has become a testing ground for exporters to shift their focus to Southeast Asia.

According to reports, many Chinese companies see this annual event as a potential way to attract buyers and expand their overseas footprint, drawn by the region's rapidly growing economy and young consumers, as well as the slowdown in Western demand.

Li Wenqi (a manager at a Jiangxi-based electric scooter and battery manufacturer) is one of the exporters seeking new opportunities. His company has long relied on the European and American markets, but he said these markets have reached their limits.

"The West is nearly saturated, the Middle East is suffering from wars, and the world is just so big," he said, "Southeast Asia has a large population and great potential."

The report stated that the China-ASEAN Expo is a major platform for promoting trade and investment with Southeast Asia, highlighting ASEAN's role as China's largest trading partner and increasingly replacing Western markets. The expo opened on the 17th and ended on the 21st.

The report also said that as the U.S. imposes tariff wars, ASEAN has become more important for China's trade strategy. China's exports to ASEAN surged (up 22.5% year-on-year in August), helping offset the decline in exports to the United States.

Dave Jenkins, vice president of a Jiangsu-based company that specializes in energy-saving equipment and monitoring systems, said that some Southeast Asian countries found the company's products very suitable and invited it to participate, providing space at the exhibition.

Although the company still mainly focuses on the domestic market, Jenkins said he hopes Southeast Asia will become one of its first overseas markets. The company attracted the interest of companies from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Brunei at the exhibition.

The report stated that the Chinese government has been pushing for closer economic ties with ASEAN, promoting commercial exchanges, and advancing the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0. Chen Jiye (manager of a Suzhou-based company that produces electric bicycles and smart suitcases) said the Chinese government encourages enterprises to export products to Belt and Road countries through subsidies and simplified customs procedures. His company currently focuses on the South American and European markets, with about 25% of its products sold to Southeast Asia, but he expects the share of this region to jump to 50% in the future.

"First, geographical proximity makes logistics much easier, secondly, there are significant advantages in transportation costs and other aspects."

He also said that the ASEAN market is becoming increasingly attractive, allowing companies to take advantage of its growing consumer demand and large population base. Indonesia alone has 280 million people. Next year marks the fifth anniversary of the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between China and ASEAN, and cooperation in areas such as trade, security, and regional governance will be further deepened. The home kitchen appliance manufacturer Wanshixing is also seeking diversification, trying to tap into the Southeast Asian market, as its U.S. orders (accounting for about 60% of its overseas sales) are affected by the tariff war.

"Due to the geopolitical uncertainty in North America, we don't want to rely solely on this market. We hope to diversify and find some safer destinations," said Vicky Bao (overseas sales manager of the company), "Southeast Asia is a natural way to further diversify. We are also developing the European market, but the Southeast Asian market is huge, and we plan to pay more attention to it in the future." (Translated by Xu Yanhong)

This photo was taken on September 17 at the Nanning International Convention Center in Guangxi. (Xinhua News Agency)

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