Report: China to set up $10bn China-ASEAN investment fund

China intends to establish a $10 billion investment fund in cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The China-ASEAN Cooperation Fund will be “designed for cooperation on infrastructure construction, energy and resources, information and communications,” said Yang Jiechi, China’s foreign minister, according to state news agency Xinhua.

The investment agreement was scheduled to be signed at the 14th ASEAN Summit in Thailand but has been postponed due to violent protests.

ASEAN is a regional economic alliance which comprises Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

China reportedly plans to inject $5 million into the fund. It will also donate $900,000 to the corporation fund of ASEAN plus China, Japan and the Republic of Korea.

Over the next three to five years, China also plans to offer $15 billion in credit to ASEAN countries. This includes $1.7 billion in loans with preferential terms and in aid for cooperation projects, Xinhua said.

Last week, Thailand’s finance minister Korn Chatikavanij, reportedly disclosed that Thailand and Malaysia are looking to set up a joint infrastructure fund for ASEAN. The fund will use ASEAN countries’ excess foreign reserves to invest in infrastructure networks.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China and ASEAN did not respond to requests for comment at press time.