In 2025, Chinese industrial and commercial enterprises significantly strengthened practical cooperation with partner countries under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), expanding engagement in trade, investment and industrial cooperation. This is reflected in new data released by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), DKNews.kz reports.
Rather than relying on political declarations alone, China has increasingly pushed the initiative forward through direct business involvement, making companies the core drivers of cooperation.
Business delegations as a key tool
Over the past year, CCPIT organized 407 overseas business delegation visits, including 228 trips to Belt and Road partner countries. These missions were designed to help Chinese companies enter new markets, identify partners on the ground and translate BRI frameworks into concrete commercial projects.
Analysts note that face-to-face engagement remains one of the most effective ways for Chinese firms to secure contracts, build trust and integrate into local economies.
Exhibitions open doors to new markets
China also relied heavily on international exhibitions to promote trade. In 2025, CCPIT approved 707 overseas exhibition projects in 43 Belt and Road partner countries, covering a total exhibition area of 360,000 square meters and involving around 26,500 enterprises.
For participating companies, these exhibitions served not only as marketing platforms, but also as gateways to:
- long-term distribution networks,
- industrial partnerships,
- and regional supply chains.
In practice, exhibitions have become one of the most visible and effective instruments of Belt and Road economic outreach.
Trade facilitation in numbers
The growing level of business activity is also reflected in trade documentation. During the first 11 months of 2025, China’s trade promotion system issued to Belt and Road partner countries:
- 4.99 million certificates of origin, and
- 559,600 commercial certificates.
These documents play a crucial role in reducing transaction costs, simplifying customs procedures and accelerating cross-border trade for companies on both sides.
Momentum to continue in 2026
CCPIT spokesperson Wang Wenshuai confirmed that China plans to maintain this pace in the coming year.
“We will continue to organize Chinese business delegations to Belt and Road partner countries in 2026,” she said.
This signals that Beijing views business engagement not as a short-term push, but as a long-term economic strategy tied to the future of the initiative.
What it means for partner countries
For Belt and Road partner states, the growing presence of Chinese businesses brings more than trade flows. It often translates into:
- new investment projects,
- job creation,
- integration into regional and global value chains.
For regions such as Central Asia, Southeast Asia and parts of the Middle East, the Belt and Road Initiative is increasingly moving from abstract policy to day-to-day economic reality, shaped by contracts, exhibitions and company-level cooperation.
The results of 2025 make one thing clear: the Belt and Road Initiative is no longer measured by speeches or memoranda, but by hundreds of business missions, thousands of companies and millions of trade documents – tangible indicators of China’s expanding economic footprint across partner countries.
