Chen Ruixian, vice director of the Pan-Beibu Gulf Economic Zone, said the establishment of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) marks a new era of cooperation in the Gulf area.

Chen was speaking at a press conference held in Nanning on August 11 to launch the 5th Pan-Beibu Gulf Economic Cooperation Forum. The forum will concentrate on relations between CAFTA and the Pan-Beibu Gulf Economic Region.

Chen promised the forum would be more innovative, more pragmatic and more flexible than those held in the past.

CAFTA, the largest free trade area in the world, was established on January 1, 2010, boosting economic and trade cooperation between China and the ten member countries of ASEAN.

The Pan-Beibu Gulf Economic Region was launched in 2006 by the southern Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Yunnan and Guangxi, and six Southeast Asian countries - Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Brunei.

Statistics show that Pan-Beibu Gulf (PBG) economic cooperation is gaining momentum. In 2009, the volume of trade between China and PBG countries reached US$208.4 billion, accounting for 97.8 percent of the total trade between China and ASEAN.

And Guangxi is in the frontline of both PBG and China-ASEAN cooperation. Its 2009 trade with the seven PBG countries accounted for 99.33 percent of its trade with ASEAN.

The Chinese central government this year strengthened policies designed to promote the development of China's western regions and strengthen the economic growth of the Guangxi Beibu Gulf Economic Zone.

Chen said the 2010 Forum aims to institutionalize PBG cooperation, explore new fields for collaboration, deepen China-ASEAN economic exchanges and accelerate the development of Nanning.