ASEAN remains China's No. 1 trading parter in 2025

The two-way trade between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries reached 331.05 billion U.S. dollars, up 8.1 percent from a year earlier in the first four months of 2025, data from China's General Administration of Customs showed.

The figure, comprising nearly 17 percent of China's total foreign trade, indicated that the highly complementary economies of the two parties form a cornerstone of regional cooperation.

The growth was primarily driven by China's exports to ASEAN countries.

In the January-April period, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia were China's top three trading partners in ASEAN.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership - or RCEP, also helped boost trade between China and ASEAN.

In addition, the successful conclusion of negotiations on Version 3.0 of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) further marks a significant stride toward regional economic integration.

ASEAN remains China's No. 1 trading parter in 2025

The U.S. dollar increased in late trading on Thursday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, gained 0.29 percent to 98.813 at 3 p.m. (1900 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro decreased to 1.1677 dollars from 1.1707 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound lost to 1.3405 dollars from 1.3516 U.S. dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 158.19 Japanese yen, higher than 157.9 Japanese yen in the previous session. The U.S. dollar increased to 0.7834 Swiss francs from 0.7823 Swiss francs, and it rose to 1.3724 Canadian dollars from 1.3716 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar climbed to 9.3495 Swedish kronor from 9.3279 Swedish kronor.

U.S. dollar ticks up