China and the Philippines are similar in many ways, particularly in terms of economic potential, despite their different views on certain issues, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian said on Thursday.

“China and the Philippines are both developing countries and emerging economies in Asia. Despite different national conditions and systems, we pursue similar development goals, complement each other’s strengths, and have enormous potential for mutually beneficial cooperation,” Huang said in his keynote speech at the 11th Manila Forum for Philippines-China Relations at New Era University in Quezon City.

Organized by the Association for Philippines-China Understanding, the 11th Manila Forum is themed “Post-Two Sessions: China’s Economic Progress and Its Trade and Economic Relations with the Philippines.”

Citing 2023 data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, Huang noted that while trade volume between the Philippines and other major trading partners has significantly decreased, China-Philippines trade “continues to rise in defiance of the trend, reaching a total of US$40 billion, a year-on-year increase of 2.7 percent.”

“China has been the largest trading partner of the Philippines for eight consecutive years, and investments in the Philippines have also maintained rapid growth, making it one of the largest sources of investment,” he said.

“The Chinese and the Philippine economies are both part of the global value, industrial, and supply chains. We have formed a deeply intertwined pattern of interests,” he added.

During the forum, Huang expressed confidence in China’s ambitious goal of achieving five percent economic growth this year.

“This increase is equivalent to twice the size of the Philippines’ GDP. The figure is not only higher than the previous IMF and World Bank forecast for China but also far exceeds the IMF’s growth forecast for the US and the EU,” he said.