China and ASEAN Ink Strengthened Free Trade Agreement Amid Trump-Era Tariffs

China and ASEAN have upgraded their free trade agreement to a “3.0 version” during the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, enhancing cooperation in infrastructure, digital and green transition, trade facilitation, and people-to-people exchanges. China and the 11-member ASEAN bloc are each other’s largest trade partners, with trade reaching $785bn in the first nine months of 2025, up 9.6% year-on-year. Chinese Premier Li Qiang highlighted deeper economic collaboration and criticized Trump-era tariffs for disrupting global trade. The deal strengthens China-ASEAN ties amid US and EU trade tensions, while Trump pursued separate bilateral deals with ASEAN nations during the summit.