With the development of the Belt and Road Initiative in Northwest China, trade between China and the five Central Asian countries has been frequent in recent years. Chinese standards, Chinese technology, and Chinese products have entered the markets of the five Central Asian countries on a large scale, injecting local economic development and social livelihood. Strong power.

On April 18, 2023, the first meeting of the economic and trade ministers of China and the five Central Asian countries was held. Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao presided over the meeting and made a speech, and the economic and trade ministers of the five Central Asian countries made speeches respectively. Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao said that the trade volume between China and the five Central Asian countries will reach US$70.2 billion in 2022, a record high. In the first two months, the trade volume between China and the five Central Asian countries increased by 22% year-on-year, maintaining a strong momentum of development.

Wang Wentao said that in 2022, under the strategic guidance of the heads of state's diplomacy, the practical cooperation between China and the five Central Asian countries will achieve fruitful results, achieving full coverage of cooperation documents for the joint construction of the Belt and Road and medium- and long-term economic and trade cooperation plans. 2023 is the first year for China to fully implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. China will usher in more opportunities for economic and trade cooperation with Central Asian countries.

Wang Wentao introduced that in 2022, China's imports of agricultural products, energy products, and mineral products from Central Asian countries will all increase by more than 50% year-on-year, and exports of mechanical and electrical products to Central Asian countries will increase by 42% year-on-year, with a more optimized structure. By the end of 2022, the stock of China's direct investment in the five Central Asian countries will be nearly US$15 billion. We have jointly implemented a number of cooperation projects in the fields of oil and gas mining, processing and manufacturing, interconnection and digital technology, which have brought tangible benefits to the people of all countries.

Wang Wentao said that China is willing to work with all parties to promote the development of new forms of trade and investment, share the huge market and the dividends of open development, and implement a number of cooperation projects; realize innovation-driven continuous empowerment, carry out cooperation in the field of digital trade, and accelerate the development of green, low-carbon and circular economy ; Ensure the safety and stability of the regional industrial chain supply chain, use various methods to promote infrastructure construction, and jointly maintain energy and food security; adhere to the maintenance of the multilateral trading system, strengthen cooperation within the framework of the WTO, and support relevant countries in Central Asia to join the WTO; Geographical advantages will make economic and trade cooperation between border regions a new growth point for practical cooperation.

The economic and trade ministers of the five countries expressed their willingness to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the heads of state, strengthen cooperation in the fields of trade and investment, digital economy, green development, and transit transportation, and jointly promote regional economic cooperation in depth and solidity. During the meeting, the economic and trade ministers of the six countries jointly agreed that relevant outcome documents will be signed during the China-Central Asia Summit, and they agreed to hold an activity to gather Central Asian cloud products and e-commerce to promote more famous and special products from Central Asia to Chinese consumers.Editor/Ma Xue