BEIJING, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- China has long remained Kyrgyzstan's largest trading partner, with bilateral economic and trade cooperation making steady progress, the Ministry of Commerce said Thursday.

Aerial photo taken on Aug. 11, 2018 shows the roads built by the China Road & Bridge Corporation in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. (Photo: Xinhua)

China-Kyrgyzstan trade reached 11.7 billion U.S. dollars in the first seven months of this year. During the period, China's exports of electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products, known as the "new three," as well as mechanical and electrical products to Kyrgyzstan grew rapidly, ministry spokesperson Huang Ling said at a regular press conference.

"Under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, bilateral economic and trade cooperation has advanced steadily in recent years and produced positive results across various fields," Huang said.

China is also Kyrgyzstan's largest source of foreign investment, with its direct investment across all sectors in Kyrgyzstan exceeding 2 billion U.S. dollars at the end of July, she said, adding that projects involving major infrastructure, energy, mining, agriculture and green development are progressing smoothly.

The two countries are also exploring ways to advance trade and investment liberalization and facilitation between China and Central Asian countries and within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to promote regional economic cooperation, Huang said.

Going forward, China stands ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state and continue promoting the high-quality development of bilateral economic and trade cooperation, said Huang.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the SCO. In 2025, China's trade with other SCO members reached 523.5 billion U.S. dollars and accounted for 8 percent of the country's total foreign trade, up from 12.1 billion dollars in 2001, Huang said, adding that China also saw rapid growth in exports of its "new three" products and in cross-border e-commerce exports to other SCO members.

Over the past 25 years, China has upheld the Shanghai Spirit and worked with other SCO members to pursue common development and share in its benefits, helping deliver fruitful results in regional economic cooperation, Huang said.

China's investment in other SCO members has continued to expand, with its direct investment across all sectors reaching 3.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2025. The investment covered areas including oil and gas, mineral resources, infrastructure, new energy, automobiles and chemicals, said Huang.

China has also invested in and built more than 30 economic and trade cooperation zones, helping SCO member states enhance their capacity for industrial development, she added.

China will continue implementing the action plan for high-quality development of economic and trade cooperation with SCO member states, observer states and dialogue partners, promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, advance trade in services and digital trade, deepen industrial and supply chain cooperation, and take regional economic cooperation to a new level, said Huang.