Trade between ASEAN and China, Japan and South Korea climbed 13.7 percent to $1.4 trillion in 2025, highlighting the growing importance of the three Northeast Asian economies to the region’s trade and investment flows.

The figure was reported during the 29th ASEAN Economic Ministers Plus Three Consultation in Manila on 21 September, where economic officials also pushed for stronger supply chains and closer cooperation amid global trade and geopolitical disruptions.

ASEAN’s preliminary statistics showed that two-way trade with the Plus Three countries increased from $1.2 trillion in 2024 to $1.4 trillion last year.

Foreign direct investment from China, Japan and South Korea into ASEAN also reached $44.8 billion in 2025, accounting for 18.2 percent of total FDI inflows into the regional bloc.

The ministers said unilateral trade actions and regional conflicts are putting pressure on the rules-based trading system. They also cited the Middle East crisis and resulting volatility in global energy markets, including disruptions to oil and gas supply chains.

These developments have raised costs for businesses and added to inflationary pressures, with micro, small and medium enterprises particularly exposed to an increasingly unpredictable operating environment.

The ministers stressed the need for closer ASEAN-Plus Three cooperation to strengthen trade, investment and supply chain connectivity and resilience.

They also endorsed the ASEAN Plus Three Economic Cooperation Work Programme for 2027–2028, building on cooperation in areas such as MSME development, trade facilitation, digital and green economies, private sector engagement, and research and knowledge exchange.

The ministers reaffirmed support for a rules-based multilateral trading system centered on the World Trade Organization, calling for meaningful WTO reform and a fully functioning dispute settlement system.

They also welcomed progress on electronic commerce at the WTO and supported efforts to integrate agreements on electronic commerce and investment facilitation into the WTO framework.

The meeting took note of recommendations from the East Asia Business Council, including greater use of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, stronger regional value chains, MSME support, digital transformation, sustainability and improved governance.

The ministers also welcomed Timor-Leste’s accession as ASEAN’s 11th member and pledged continued capacity-building and technical assistance to support its integration into the regional economy.