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Trade between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries has seen rapid growth in the past twenty years. China's financial institutions vowed to provide more support and services to boost the economic ties between the two sides.

Sun Ping (left), Assistant President of the Export-Import Bank of China, delivers a speech at the 8th China-ASEAN Expo Friday in Nanning.[China.org.cn/Yang Xi]

"The Export-Import Bank of China has been expanding its financial support to ASEAN member countries, and has been focusing on infrastructure as well as livelihood-related projects in those nations," said Sun Ping, Assistant President of the Export-Import Bank of China, at a conference during the 8th China-ASEAN Expo Friday in Nanning.

"The bank will also make more efforts to provide financial support and services to promote bilateral economic cooperation," Sun added.

The China-ASEAN Fund on Investment Cooperation, a private equity fund sponsored by the China Export Import Bank in 2009, will eventually reach US$10 billion and is expected to support infrastructure development in the China-ASEAN region and enhance trade and economic ties.

So far, China has provided US$12.2 billion worth of loans to ASEAN for infrastructure projects, such as bridges, roads, and power stations, according to China Daily.

China is now ASEAN's top trading partner and ASEAN has replaced Japan as China's third largest trade partner.

The trade volume between China and ASEAN has increased substantially in the past twenty years. According to the statistics from China Customs, the trade between the two sides in reached US$292.78 billion 2010, up from US$7.96 billion in 1991, with an average annual growth rate of more than 20 percent.

By the end of June 2011, the cumulative value of two-way investments hit US$80 billion. Meanwhile, direct investment from China to ASEAN in 2010 was US$2.57 billion, up 12 percent from the previous year. Investments from ASEAN to China counted US$6.32billion, up 35.2 percent.

The eighth China-ASEAN Expo kicked off in the southwestern city of Nanning in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on Friday, with economic cooperation and environmental protection topping the agenda.

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