China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have signed an expanded free trade agreement, world agencies reported, BTA reports.
“Unity is strength“, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said at the China-ASEAN summit held after the signing of the document.
The new agreement, called ASEAN-China 3.0, was signed on the last day of the annual summit and related forums, in the presence of Li Keqiang and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is this year's ASEAN chairman.
This is the third revision of the long-standing agreement, first signed in 2002 and entered into force in 2010. The free trade area covers a market of more than 2 billion people, reducing tariffs on goods and boosting flows of services and investment.
Two-way trade between China and ASEAN countries has grown from $235.5 billion in 2010 to almost $1 trillion last year.
ASEAN was founded in 1967 and its first summit was held in 1976.
ASEAN-China 3.0 is expected to expand regional integration, including in digital trade, the green economy, sustainability and support for small and medium-sized enterprises, which form the bulk of business in the association.
The agreement aims to expand access to the benefits of trade, improve market access for smaller participants, simplify non-tariff procedures and to reduce regulatory barriers, officials say.