On the afternoon of September 16, the “Chinese SMEs Seeking New Opportunities in the RCEP Market” activity was held in meeting room 103 in the Nanning International Convention and Exhibition Center.

It was co-hosted by the Trade Development Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce, the China-ASEAN Expo secretariat, and the Guangxi Department of Commerce.

The RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) is a free trade agreement to establish a unified market of 16 countries through the reduction of tariff and non-tariff barriers initiated by the 10 ASEAN countries and inviting China, Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand and India to jointly participate ("10+6").

If successful, the RCEP will cover a population of about 3.5 billion, with GDP totaling $23 trillion, accounting for one-third of the world. The area covered will be the world's largest free trade area.

The Australian consulate-general in Guangzhou, Japanese consulate in Guangzhou, South Korean embassy in China and business officials of the Indian embassy were invited as speakers to promote trade market demand and opportunities of their respective countries to the participants of the 150 Chinese SMEs.

The activity had remarkable results with warm atmosphere. This activity, taking the China-ASEAN Expo as a platform, seeks new channels and opportunities in RCEP regional markets for Chinese SMEs under the background of building the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, establishing a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road and steady promotion of RCEP negotiations.

Edited by Michael Thai