NANNING, May 9 (Xinhua) -- The China-Cambodia (Nanning) Rubber Production Base was officially launched on Thursday in Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

This new base is designed to enhance industrial cooperation and cross-border trade with Southeast Asia.

Located in the Nanning comprehensive bonded zone, the 7,500-square-meter facility includes a rubber mixing line with an annual capacity of 24,000 tonnes, along with an R&D center and warehouse. The project is backed by investors from Cambodia and Thailand.

Technical support and on-site management are being provided by a team of experts from Thailand.

By 2026, the base is projected to generate an annual industrial output of 1.08 billion yuan (about 149.8 million U.S. dollars), with estimated tax contributions exceeding 54 million yuan.

Zhong Hong, deputy mayor of Nanning, said the project progressed from planning to launch in just 79 days, reflecting the city's commitment to facilitating ASEAN investment.

The base is positioned to become a hub for rubber processing and commodity trade with ASEAN markets, Zhong added.

In the first quarter of this year, ASEAN remained China's largest trading partner, with total trade reaching 1.71 trillion yuan, up 7.1 percent from a year earlier and accounting for 16.6 percent of China's overall trade value.■