01. China calls for upholding Myanmar stability

Feb. 3, 2021 (China Daily) — China expressed its hope that the international community would contribute to the political and social stability of Myanmar, which saw relatively calm streets inside the country but increasing tension from outside. The statement came after a yearlong state of emergency was declared and senior government leaders were detained on Feb. 1 following electoral tensions. Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Feb. 2, ahead of a United Nations Security Council meeting, that outside moves should be conducive to peaceful settlement of disputes and not to complicating the situation.

02. Initiative aims to boost China-ASEAN business under RCEP

Feb. 5, 2021 (China Daily) — China-ASEAN Business Council and 75 other business associations jointly issued the Chinese Business Community Initiative, aimed at promoting business cooperation under the framework of the RCEP agreement. The initiative called on companies and associations in the commercial and business industry to explore and seize opportunities brought by openingup, strengthen industrial cooperation, promote trade and investment, support each other in containing the COVID-19 pandemic, establish favorable conditions for an open market,and leverage the strength of enterprises in economic and trade cooperation.

03. RMB remains largest cross-border payment currency with ASEAN

Feb. 7, 2021 (China Daily) — Renminbi maintained its position as the largest cross-border payment currency between Guangxi and ASEAN in 2020, officials from the Nanning Central Subbranch of the People’s Bank of China (PBC) said on Feb. 3.Guangxi’s cross-border RMB settlement amount reached RMB 155.7 billion yuan (US$ 24.04 billion) in 2020, accounting for 40.75% of overall domestic and foreign currency cross-border income and expenditure. The total settlement between Guangxi and ASEAN was RMB 68.1 billion yuan, accounting for 60%of the Guangxi-ASEAN domestic and foreign currency crossborder income and expenditure.

04. Yunnan cements ties of China,ASEAN members

Feb. 8, 2021 (Xinhua) — A handful of seashells are on display in a museum in Southwest China’s border province of Yunnan, recording the country’s history of international communication. Archaeologists believe that the seashells,imported from south Asia and Southeast Asia over 2,000 years ago, were used as both currency and an important commodity in Yunnan. Today, they embody the longstanding economic ties between China and the region.Bordering Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam, Yunnan has been on the front line of exchanges between China and ASEAN members.

05. China-donated Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines arrive in Laos

Feb. 8, 2021 (China Daily) — A batch of China-donated Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines arrived in the Lao capital Vientiane early on Feb. 8. A YTO Express cargo plane carrying the Chinese-made vaccines arrived at Wattay International Airport at around 1:00 am local time. Lao Minister of Health Bounkong Syhavong and Chinese Ambassador to Laos Jiang Zaidong received the vaccines at the airport and expressed appreciation to China’s contribution to the fight against the global epidemic.

06. China’s Great Wall Motors makes foray into Thailand

Feb. 10, 2021 (China Daily) — China’s largest SUV and pickup truck maker Great Wall Motors unveiled two vehicle models in Thailand on Feb. 9, firing the opening salvo of its effort to explore the market in the Southeast Asian country.Another two models will follow soon this year, and a total of nine models will be available in the Thai market in three years,said the company headquartered in Baoding, Hebei Province.The majority of the nine models will be electric ones, as Great Wall Motors aspires to become a leader in the country’s new energy vehicle segment.

07. Thai fruit exports to China surge despite pandemic impacts

Feb. 18, 2021 (Xinhua) — Thailand’s export value of fruit products to China surged 39.43% year-on-year in 2020 despite the impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. This was compared with a 4% increase posted in Thailand's total exports of goods to China last year. Total value of the Southeast Asian country’s fruit exports to China reached US$ 2.9 billion last year, according to data from the Thai Government Public Relations Department. In breakdown, its fresh durian exports to China totaled US$ 1.51 billion in 2020,surging 77.57% from one year ago.

08. Thailand welcomes first batch of Sinovac

Feb. 25, 2021 (China Daily) — Thailand welcomed the arrival of a Chinese-developed COVID-19 vaccine on Feb. 24, when neighboring Malaysia began mass vaccinations. In Bangkok,authorities took possession of 200,000 doses of a vaccine from Sinovac Biotech, putting the country on course to kick off a national inoculation campaign. Sinovac vaccine could prove “a big hand to help Thailand” in its fight against the COVID-19, “especially in the areas with high transmission”,said Thira Woratanarat, Associate Professor in the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine at Bangkok-based Chulalongkorn University.