CHONGQING \u2013 Singapore and China announced\u00a0a record 27 deals after top-level talks on Dec 15, including a pilot scheme to let Singaporean tourists use digital renminbi in China. <\/p>\n
The new deliverables, spanning sectors from health and food to the digital economy, come as both countries call for deeper and broader ties amid geopolitical uncertainties, rapid technological changes and economic headwinds.<\/p>\n
Against this backdrop, \u201cit is therefore all the more important for Singapore and China to continue to find ways to cooperate, anticipating challenges and capitalising on new opportunities,\u201d said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, speaking at the Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC), the apex bilateral platform.<\/p>\n
Chinese Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang, who is Mr Gan\u2019s co-chair for the JCBC, said in his opening remarks that despite rising global unilateralism, the relationship between China and Singapore had grown steadily, with cooperation yielding fruitful results.<\/p>\n
He noted that trade between the two countries in the first 11 months of 2025 grew 8.8 per cent from a year earlier, while the number of flights between Singapore and China has also exceeded pre-Covid-19 levels.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The annual JCBC and related meetings are being held 2025 in the south-western Chinese city of Chongqing to mark the 10th anniversary of the China-Singapore (Chongqing) Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity (CCI). It is a bilateral collaboration platform aimed at strengthening connectivity between western China and South-east Asia.<\/p>\n
After nearly three hours of talks, both leaders witnessed the announcement of the 27 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) and agreements. <\/p>\n
Five of the documents set out plans for the CCI\u2019s next decade, extending cooperation to new areas such as healthcare, education, green finance and digital trade, while building on its four initial areas of collaboration \u2013 financial services, aviation, transport and logistics, and information and communications technology.<\/p>\n
Under one of the agreements announced, DBS Bank was named Singapore\u2019s second renminbi clearing bank, after the Singapore branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC).<\/p>\n
DBS Bank China chief executive Ginger Cheng told The Straits Times that being part of the CCI has helped the bank expand its share of China\u2019s offshore bond market, including issuing the first offshore renminbi bond under the initiative.<\/p>\n
DBS used CCI\u2019s cross-border investment channels to lead or participate in 44 offshore bank issuances totalling 57.3 billion yuan (S$10.48 billion), involving clients from Chongqing and neighbouring provinces such as Sichuan, Hubei and Shaanxi, she said.<\/p>\n
Another agreement will allow Singapore travellers to China to use digital renminbi for purchases under a pilot programme.<\/p>\n
Starting in December, the Singapore branches of the ICBC and the Bank of China will roll out the pilot in phases, enabling customers to open and top up digital renminbi wallets.<\/p>\n
Digital renminbi payments can be made in China without internet, as long as users have phones equipped with near-field communication technology. China is one of the top destinations for Singapore travellers.<\/p>\n
Other agreements include a protocol between Singapore\u2019s Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment and China\u2019s General Administration of Customs to facilitate the export of processed meat from Singapore manufacturers to China. <\/p>\n After nearly three hours of talks, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong (fifth from left) and Chinese Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang (fifth from right) witnessed the announcement of the 27 MOUs and agreements.<\/p>\n PHOTO: MDDI<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The Ministry of Health also signed an MOU with China\u2019s National Health Commission to work closer together in areas such as the prevention and control of communicable and non-communicable diseases; healthy ageing and aged care policy; and women\u2019s and children\u2019s health.<\/p>\n Another MOU was inked between the Ministry of Law and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade to cooperate in international commercial dispute resolution, intellectual property management, legal support for the growth of digital and green economies, and international trade policies and compliance.<\/p>\n This year marks the <\/p>\n 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and China<\/p>\n <\/a>, commemorated by a series of high-level exchanges, including reciprocal visits by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Chinese Premier Li Qiang.<\/p>\n Mr Gan, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry, is on his second work visit to China in four months.<\/p>\n In his opening remarks at the JCBC, Mr Gan noted that the relationship goes back much further than 35 years. \u201cEarly exchanges between Mr Lee Kuan Yew and Mr Deng Xiaoping forged the mutual understanding and respect that have laid the foundation for our bilateral relations to grow and deepen.\u201d<\/p>\n This foundation paved the way for the three government-to-government projects, namely the <\/p>\n Suzhou Industrial Park<\/p>\n <\/a>, Tianjin Eco-City and the CCI.<\/p>\n An offshoot of the CCI is the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC), a rail-and-sea multimodal transportation route. It moves cargo to and from Chongqing, Singapore and beyond, through Qinzhou Port in Guangxi autonomous region in southern China. Cargo volumes along the CCI-ILSTC grew 15 per cent between 2022 and 2024.<\/p>\n Singapore\u2019s investments in Chongqing have doubled from US$5.7 billion (S$7.4 billion) in 2015 to US$12.7 billion in 2024. Trade between Chongqing and Singapore, its largest investor, also grew 15.5 per cent in 2024 from a year ago. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/picture><\/div>