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China and ASEAN trade deal speeds up business exchanges

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China and ASEAN trade deal speeds up business exchanges

China and ASEAN are strengthening economic integration through trade, supply chains, and consumer markets, driven by CAFTA 3.0 and RCEP agreements that lower trade barriers. The upcoming 23rd China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning will highlight opportunities in digital economy, green development, and supply chain connectivity, extending cooperation beyond traditional trade frameworks.

Trade data shows strong momentum, with China-ASEAN trade reaching 5.95 trillion yuan in the first eight months of 2026, up 20.6 percent year-on-year. Companies like Ruijie Networks and Futaihua Precision Industry report substantial export and import growth, while Shandong province cites ASEAN as its largest import source.

China and ASEAN are deepening economic integration through trade, supply chains, and consumer markets. CAFTA 3.0 and RCEP agreements lower trade barriers, enabling easier regional business operations. The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo will highlight opportunities in digital economy, green development, and supply chain connectivity. China-ASEAN trade reached 5.95 trillion yuan in early 2026, growing 20.6% year-on-year.

Key Points

• China and ASEAN are deepening economic ties through trade, supply chains, and consumer markets, with CAFTA 3.0 and RCEP expected to lower trade barriers and expand cooperation into digital economy and green development sectors.

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• Chinese companies are increasingly sourcing, manufacturing, and selling within Southeast Asia while ASEAN businesses gain greater access to China’s consumer markets, with China-ASEAN trade reaching 5.95 trillion yuan in the first eight months of 2026, up 20.6 percent year-on-year.

• The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo will highlight opportunities from CAFTA 3.0, with companies like Ruijie Networks experiencing significant growth, particularly in networking equipment exports to Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia amid rising digital infrastructure investment.

China-ASEAN Economic Integration

Deepening Trade and Economic Interconnection

China and ASEAN member states are experiencing unprecedented economic convergence through integrated trade, supply chains, and consumer markets. This deepening relationship extends beyond conventional cooperation frameworks, driven by two critical agreements: the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 Upgrade Protocol (CAFTA 3.0) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Both agreements aim to significantly lower trade barriers and streamline business operations across regional markets.

The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning will showcase opportunities emerging from CAFTA 3.0 while promoting collaboration in digital economy, green development, and supply chain connectivity. According to experts like Xu Liping from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, production networks have fundamentally reshaped the China-ASEAN relationship, enabling Chinese companies to source and manufacture regionally while providing ASEAN businesses greater access to China’s vast consumer markets.

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Modernization Beyond Traditional Trade

Expanding into Digital and Green Economy Sectors

CAFTA 3.0, signed in October 2025, represents the latest evolution of cooperation that began in 2002 and fully implemented in 2010, with upgraded protocols following in 2015 and 2019. Lin Honghong, vice-chairperson of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, emphasizes that the agreement extends cooperation into digital and green economies, creating unprecedented opportunities for industrial and supply chain integration. This expansion reflects changing business priorities and regional development needs, transcending conventional trade and investment frameworks to address emerging economic sectors that will define future growth.

Robust Trade Performance and Real-World Success

Impressive Growth Metrics and Corporate Expansion

Trade statistics validate the economic momentum. China-ASEAN trade reached 5.95 trillion yuan ($886 billion) in the first eight months of 2026, representing 20.6 percent year-on-year growth. Regional data demonstrates tangible results: Ruijie Networks’ ASEAN exports surged 93 percent to 1.44 billion yuan, driven by rising demand for networking equipment across Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Similarly, Futaihua Precision Industry imported over 300 million yuan of Southeast Asian components—a remarkable 320 percent increase. Shandong province reports ASEAN as its largest import source at 196.66 billion yuan, demonstrating that integration extends across multiple Chinese provinces and sectors, creating broad-based economic benefits throughout the region.

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Prince Harry Calls His First Two Weeks Back in Britain ‘Eventful’ in First Interview Since His Return

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Prince Harry

LONDON — Prince Harry made his first public appearance and gave his first interview since unexpectedly relocating back to the United Kingdom, describing the two weeks since his return in a single word: “eventful.”

The Duke of Sussex attended the inaugural Invictus Spirit Awards at the Old Royal Naval College in London on September 17, arriving solo in black tie and wearing medals from his time as a working member of the royal family. His wife, Meghan Markle, was believed to be at home with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, at the family’s private, non-royal residence outside London, where they have been living since relocating from California in late August.

Speaking to Hello! magazine, which conducted the first interview with Harry since his return, the prince reflected on the whirlwind period since the family’s move. “It’s great to be back on British soil,” he said. When asked what had stood out most since settling back into life in the U.K., Harry responded with characteristic humor. “My highlight so far? Oh, I don’t know. Would I dare share it with you?” he said, before turning more direct. “It’s been eventful,” he added. “But, you know, we’re getting stuck into the work. Kids are in school. We’re happy. And, as I said, it’s great to be back on British soil, and looking forward to Birmingham next year for the Invictus Games that’s coming up,” referring to the next edition of the Games scheduled for July 2027.

Harry expanded further on his feelings about the evening itself, describing the emotional weight of reconnecting with the community tied to the Invictus Games, the multi-sport competition he founded in 2014 for wounded, injured and sick military service members. “It’s great,” he said. “It’s wonderful to be back on British soil and really nice to see so many old faces and friends that came to this, and new faces as well, and new donors. And most of all, I guess, my Invictus family. It’s been a very special journey over the last 12 years. So, yeah, all families.”

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According to Hello!, Harry was “clearly in his element” throughout the evening, stopping repeatedly to talk with attendees and take selfies with anyone who asked. The outlet reported that Harry, speaking with them later in the evening, admitted he was “a little hot and sweaty” and had gotten makeup on his tuxedo from hugging so many guests, a detail the publication characterized as evidence of the warm welcome he received at the event.

The Invictus Spirit Awards, described as an event held to honor the bravest and most resilient former servicemen and women, drew a number of high-profile attendees and supporters. Harry’s friend James Corden was on hand at the event, while celebrities including Michael Bublé, Elton John, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and Ed Sheeran donated items for the evening’s charity auction. Hello! reported the event raised more than $2.2 million, with roughly 350 guests in attendance dining on Cornish lamb.

Harry, a 10-year veteran of the British Army, was seen wiping away a tear at one point during the evening, underscoring the emotional resonance the event carried for him personally. In his own remarks to the room, Harry spoke about what resilience and recovery can look like for the service members the Invictus Games was created to support. “Sometimes victory is getting out of bed or asking for help,” he said. “It is finding work, reconnecting with your family, or putting a uniform away and discovering that your service — and your purpose — did not end with it.”

Harry’s appearance came in the same week that excerpts from his uncle Charles Spencer’s forthcoming memoir about Princess Diana, titled “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister,” began circulating in the British press. According to multiple reports, neither Harry nor his brother, Prince William, were made aware of the book’s contents before the excerpts were released. At one point during the evening, a reporter called out to Harry asking how he was feeling about his uncle’s book. According to the Daily Mail, Harry ignored the question and “looked serious” in response, declining to address the memoir publicly.

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Harry’s solo appearance at the awards event marked a notable early public moment following the family’s abrupt relocation, which came ahead of Archie and Lilibet starting the new school term in England. The couple’s return has continued to generate substantial media attention in the weeks since, with ongoing coverage focused on the family’s living arrangements, their children’s schooling, and the broader state of Harry’s relationship with the rest of the royal family, including his father, King Charles, and his brother, William.

With the next Invictus Games still roughly ten months away in Birmingham, and further fallout from his uncle’s memoir likely to continue unfolding in the British press in the days ahead, Harry’s first public remarks since returning to the U.K. offered a brief but candid glimpse into how he has been navigating the transition back to life in his home country after several years based in the United States.

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Warren Buffett steps down as Berkshire chairman after six decades

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Earl Spencer walking, wearing a navy suit and a purple tie.

Warren Buffett has stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, handing over leadership to his son Howard in the final chapter of a long-planned transition at the US business giant.

At 96, the world-famous investor will move into an advisory role as chairman emeritus and remain on the company board to offer his “judgement and perspective”, according to a letter to shareholders, external.

The decision comes nine months after Buffett passed the chief executive role to Greg Abel, with his son, Howard, who has been a director since 1993, taking over non-executive board duties.

Known as the “Oracle of Omaha,” Buffett built one of the most successful investment track records in modern history.

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He took control of Berkshire Hathaway in 1965 when it was a struggling New England textile mill and turned it into a $1.1 trillion (£822b), global conglomerate.

Today, the business owns a wide range of well-known brands including GEICO car insurance, Dairy Queen, and BNSF railway system. It also owns large stakes in companies like Apple and Coca-Cola – a brand close to Buffett’s heart, as he famously drinks five cans a day.

Buffett has made his mark through “value investing” – a strategy focused on finding companies with solid fundamentals, buying them at fair prices, and holding them for decades.

His annual letters to shareholders and festival-like annual meetings turned him into a leading mentor across the financial world.

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Despite his retirement from the top board post, the change is considered an orderly passing of the baton rather than a sudden shock.

“The timing is right to complete the transition,” Buffett wrote, noting he had recently celebrated his 96th birthday and the first birthday of one of his great-grandchildren, who is “moving a bit faster” than he is.

The company assured investors that day-to-day operations will remain steady.

While Greg Abel manages corporate strategy and capital decisions, Howard Buffett’s main duty as chairman will be guarding the firm’s “culture and values”. A former farmer, philanthropist, and sheriff, the younger Buffett brings more than three decades of board experience to the role.

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Buffett concluded his letter by saying it had been the “privilege of a lifetime” to serve as chairman, but acknowledged that in the end, “Father Time always wins”.

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Citigroup Inc. (C) Presents at Barclays 24th Annual Global Financial Services Conference Transcript

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OneWater Marine Inc. (ONEW) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript