The 9th China-South Asia Expo commenced on Thursday(June 19) in the city of Kunming, Yunnan Province, marking a significant leap forward in regional economic integration under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). With participation from 73 countries, regions, and international organizations, the six-day event brings together over 2,500 enterprises to boost cross-border trade, innovation, and collaboration.
A total of 16 thematic exhibition halls have been set up, 70% of which spotlight professional sectors such as advanced manufacturing, green energy, traditional Chinese medicine, and the global coffee industry. Notably, South Asia-themed pavilions—featuring nearly 800 booths—have seen strong representation from India and Pakistan, with each hosting 140 booths to showcase national products and investment potential.
The expo, jointly organized by China’s Ministry of Commerce and the Yunnan provincial government, is more than a trade fair—it is a pivotal platform reinforcing Beijing’s growing connectivity with South and Southeast Asia under the BRI framework. First launched in 2013, the same year China unveiled the BRI, the expo has facilitated over $110 billion in foreign trade transactions and has served more than 20,000 enterprises.
Nearly 40 high-level events are slated during the expo, including international trade forums, business dialogues, and procurement matchmaking meetings aimed at nurturing long-term commercial linkages. These events echo the core objective of the BRI—to promote infrastructure development, policy alignment, and people-to-people exchange across Asia and beyond.
In his keynote speech, Vice Minister of Commerce Yan Dong reaffirmed China’s commitment to high-level opening-up and emphasized the country's drive toward modernization through high-quality development. “This transformation opens valuable opportunities for regional cooperation in areas like digital economy, low-carbon growth, artificial intelligence, and biomedicine,” Yan said.
According to recent data from China’s Ministry of Commerce, trade between China and South Asian countries reached nearly $200 billion in 2024—doubling over the past decade with a robust average annual growth rate of 6.3%. As BRI-related infrastructure matures across ports, railways, and industrial zones in the region, South Asia is emerging as a central pillar in China's strategic economic landscape.
The China-South Asia Expo 2025 thus serves not only as a celebration of mutual progress but as a springboard for deeper, future-focused cooperation under the banner of shared prosperity.
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