The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has become Zhejiang province's largest contributor to foreign trade growth.

According to Hangzhou Customs, Zhejiang's trade with ASEAN reached 559.96 billion yuan ($78.56 billion) in the first eight months of 2025, up 16.1 percent year-on-year. The bloc accounted for 40.4 percent of the province's overall trade growth, ranking first among all markets.

Exports to ASEAN rose 16.7 percent to 390.04 billion yuan, while imports increased 14.9 percent to 169.92 billion yuan. Both export and import growth contributions were the highest among Zhejiang's trading partners.

In recent years, ASEAN's share of Zhejiang's total trade has continued to expand, rising from 13.1 percent in 2020 to 15.2 percent in the first eight months of this year. The bloc is now Zhejiang's second-largest trading market.

Cross-border e-commerce has become a new growth driver. Zhejiang's exports to ASEAN through e-commerce platforms reached 45.61 billion yuan in the January-August period, up 62.2 percent year-on-year, accounting for more than one-fourth of the province's total e-commerce exports. ASEAN has now overtaken other regions to become Zhejiang's largest market for cross-border e-commerce.

ASEAN has also become one of Zhejiang's main sources of imports. The province's imports from the bloc accounted for 19.1 percent of total imports in the first eight months, up from 17.8 percent in 2020. Among them, imports of consumer goods reached 24.86 billion yuan, up 36.6 percent, while imports of fresh fruits and nuts rose 50.8 percent to 8.02 billion yuan.