The 21st China-ASEAN Expo resulted in 109 project agreements on Tuesday, the first day of the event, with many involving companies from Vietnam, Malaysia, Laos and other member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Nearly 70 percent of the projects signed at the event in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, focus on manufacturing.
More than 3,000 enterprises are participating in the five-day event, including more than 800 from ASEAN and outside the region. The exhibition area of the expo this year spans nearly 200,000 square meters.
The 109 projects signed on Tuesday primarily focused on key industries such as new chemical materials, new energy and energy storage, and machinery and equipment.
Among the 93 deals that involved investment into Guangxi, 69 percent were focused on manufacturing. Over 70 percent of these deals were launched by enterprises from China's key economic areas, such as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Yangtze River Delta.
Companies from Malaysia also expressed a willingness to invest in Guangxi to tap into the region's growing economic potential. The region is an ideal hub for ASEAN countries to reach the broader Chinese market.
"China has a large consumer market and has experienced swift development. Malaysia has its resource advantages. Our company wants to use the opportunity of setting up business in Guangxi to introduce Malaysian palm oil and related products to China, while also bringing better Chinese goods to Southeast Asia," said Steven Lu, department manager from Minko International, a palm oil producer and exporter in Malaysia.
Meanwhile, some Chinese companies managed to secure contracts for major infrastructure projects in Southeast Asia.
"Today, we signed a project for the production of a specialized pipeline. We plan to invest 2.1 billion yuan (about 300 million U.S. dollars) in Fangchenggang port city (in Guangxi), and the first phase of investment will amount to 900 million yuan (about 128 million U.S. dollars). We value the port's export advantages and access to raw materials," said Su Minglong, general manager of the Guangxi Guihao Pipeline Company.
China-ASEAN Expo sees dozens of manufacturing projects signed on first day
