On 17 April 2023, H.E. Secretary General Shi Zhongjun of the ASEAN-China Centre (ACC) met with the Honorable Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) of the Philippines in Manila. Undersecretary Ceferino S. Rodolfo, the DTI Assistant Secretary Allan B. Gepty and Assistant Secretary Glenn G. Peñaranda attended the meeting.

Secretary General Shi Zhongjun said that trade and investment are important pillars of ASEAN-China relations and key areas of work of the ACC. The Philippines and China are both developing countries sharing similar development mentalities, complementary development advantages, broad-based common interests and bright prospects for cooperation. The ACC looks forward to strengthening cooperation with the DTI in the post-pandemic era, stepping up efforts to enhance the level of trade and optimize the investment environment in the Philippines and China, and building a model of trade and investment cooperation between ASEAN Member States and China.

Pascual said that the Philippines and China enjoy a deep traditional friendship and are destined to be close partners. The Philippines is now pressing ahead with its post-pandemic economic rebound and has a strong demand for cooperation with China in such areas as innovative development, digital economy, fiber-optic communication and renewable energy. The Philippine side is more than willing to leverage the ACC’s platform and resources to attract more Chinese enterprises to invest in the Philippines, and elevate the Philippines-China and ASEAN-China cooperation to a new level.