UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday hailed the substantial conclusion of Version 3.0 ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (FTA) upgrade negotiations, saying that it will promote global free trade and economic growth.
China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) announced on Thursday at the sidelines of the 27th ASEAN – China Summit in Vientiane, Lao the substantial conclusion of ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) 3.0 Upgrade Negotiations.
The construction of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area was completed in 2010, and Version 3.0 FTA negotiations began in November 2022.
The upgraded FTA covers nine areas, including both existing areas of the China-ASEAN free trade agreement and emerging areas with huge potential for cooperation between the two sides, much to the delight of Southeast Asian businesses.
In response to a media query, the UN chief said at a press conference that the United Nations welcomes the agreement that promotes global free trade.
"We are totally committed to first of all, guarantee that we have only one global economy with one only set of rules, one global internet, and that fragmentation must be avoided at all costs. So what brings people together within this global economy, all the agreements that are made in order to increase free trade, in order to create conditions for economic growth to be boosted. All these (China-ASEAN) agreements are from all these perspectives, all is welcome," Guterres said.
UN chief hails substantial conclusion of Version 3.0 China-ASEAN FTA upgrade negotiations
UN chief hails substantial conclusion of Version 3.0 China-ASEAN FTA upgrade negotiations
UN chief hails substantial conclusion of Version 3.0 China-ASEAN FTA upgrade negotiations
China released the outline of its 15th Five-Year Plan on Friday, highlighting digital intelligence development and high-quality population development as vital drivers of economic and social progress.
Including dedicated sections on the two themes, the plan calls for greater efforts to facilitate AI applications and establish life cycle care to safeguard the people's right to development.
Compared with the 14th Five-Year Plan, which focused on accelerating digitalization, the new concept of "digital intelligence development" places greater emphasis on the integration of artificial intelligence with the real economy, according to a macro economy expert.
"While the previous five-year plan caught the wave of digitalization, the new plan is embracing a new wave. As we all know, the new round of science and technology revolution, featuring the rapid development of AI, is thriving. The 15th five-year plan elaborates in a separate chapter how China can respond to the new trend of science and technology and industrial development. Compared with the previous plan, which emphasized 'digital economy,' the new plan highlights 'new intelligent economic forms,' which requires AI to be integrated into all aspects of economic development and to better empower growth. This will be an important direction for the future," said Dong Yu, Executive Deputy Director of the China Institute for Development Planning at Tsinghua University.
The plan also places new emphasis on high-quality population development, dedicating a separate section to supporting policies throughout the life cycle of its citizens based on China's long-term demographic trends.
"The role of human factors in China's development is becoming increasingly prominent. Economic work now places greater emphasis on combining investment in physical assets with investment in people. By dedicating a separate chapter to population issues, the plan is not focusing solely on birth rates. More importantly, it aims to build a full-chain support system covering needs from birth to growth to elderly care. The tasks laid out in the plan will match these needs, ensuring that the principle of putting people first is reflected across every stage of human development," said Dong.
China’s 15th five-year plan underscores digital intelligence, high-quality population development
