ASEAN recorded a goods trade surplus of US$81.4 billion in 2025, as exports of US$2.23 trillion outweighed imports of US$2.14 trillion.
This headline figure, however, masks considerable variation across trading partners. The widest gap is with China, one of ASEAN’s largest partners, which accounted for a US$300.8 billion deficit in 2025.
These figures are drawn from the ASEAN Statistical Highlights 2026, which reports total goods trade of US$4.37 trillion, an increase of 13.7% from the previous year. Trade was equivalent to 102.7% of ASEAN’s combined GDP, which indicates how closely the region’s economies are tied to international markets.
The Surplus and The China Gap
Stronger exports kept ASEAN’s goods trade in surplus. Exports totalled US$2,226 billion against imports of US$2,144.6 billion, a gap of US$81.4 billion in the region’s favour.
By partner, the balance looks very different. ASEAN imported US$300.8 billion more from China than it exported there in 2025. China also supplied the largest share of ASEAN’s imports, at 28.3%. On the export side, the biggest destination was ASEAN itself, which took 21.4% of the region’s outbound goods.
China is ASEAN’s main supplier of imported goods, but ASEAN sells much less to China than it buys from it. The deficit alone does not explain why that gap exists, nor does it show that ASEAN is worse off because of it.
Deficits with China, South Korea and Japan
China was not the only major trading partner with which ASEAN recorded a deficit. The region also ran trade deficits with South Korea, at US$55 billion, and Japan, at US$3.8 billion.
Its trade balances were positive with other partners. ASEAN recorded a US$43.7 billion surplus with India and a US$17.7 billion surplus with Australia.
ASEAN’s goods trade balance by partner, 2025
| Trading partner | Trade balance (US$ billion) |
|---|---|
| China | -300.8 |
| South Korea | -55.0 |
| Japan | -3.8 |
| New Zealand | +2.8 |
| Australia | +17.7 |
| India | +43.7 |
| Intra-ASEAN | +57.6 |
| Total | +81.4 |
Partners shown are not exhaustive, the total includes all trading partners.
A surplus for the region as a whole does not mean a surplus with every partner. ASEAN can post a positive overall balance while still running large deficits in some individual trade relationships.
The report does not explain what drives these differences. What it does show is that ASEAN’s trade is spread across several major partners, and that each one affects the overall balance in its own way.
One outside explanation comes from HSBC. According to a December 2025 analysis by its ASEAN economist, Yun Liu, the widening deficit with China largely reflects closer supply chain integration, especially in electronics and electrical machinery.
Electrical Machinery Leads Exports and Imports
Another way to understand ASEAN’s place in global markets is to look at what it actually trades. Electrical machinery and equipment led the region’s exports in 2025, making up 30.2% of total goods exports, ahead of machinery and mechanical appliances at 14.8% and mineral fuels at 7.4%.
The same three categories also rank among ASEAN’s major imports, though in different proportions. Electrical machinery and equipment again came first at 29.8%, followed by machinery and mechanical appliances at 13.9% and mineral fuels at 12.3%.
Top goods categories in ASEAN trade, 2025 (share of total)
| Category (HS code) | Share of exports | Share of imports |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical machinery and equipment (HS 85) | 30.2% | 29.8% |
| Machinery and mechanical appliances (HS 84) | 14.8% | 13.9% |
| Mineral fuels (HS 27) | 7.4% | 12.3% |
Electrical machinery and mechanical appliances rank among ASEAN’s largest exports and imports alike, which points to heavy two-way trade in manufactured and industrial goods. The report does not break these categories down by partner, so it cannot say how much of the region’s machinery imports came from China.
According to the same HSBC analysis, electronics and electrical machinery make up roughly 30% of ASEAN’s exports to China and roughly 30% of its imports from China, which fits the bank’s view that the deficit largely reflects supply chain connectivity.
HSBC does not say which year these shares refer to.
Trade Within The Bloc
Trade within ASEAN remained a significant part of the region’s goods trade, making up 21.4% of exports and 19.5% of imports. Among member states, this trade produced a surplus of US$57.6 billion.
ASEAN kept a positive goods trade balance in 2025, but its relationships with individual partners varied widely, with surpluses in some cases and large deficits in others, China being the example.
The US$300.8 billion deficit with China does not cancel out ASEAN’s overall surplus. It does show that a single regional figure can hide sharp differences underneath.
Reference
ASEANstats. (2026). ASEAN statistical highlights 2026. https://www.aseanstats.org/publication/ash2026/
