China’s Economic Relations with Southeast Asia: Changing Dimensions

Abstract

China’s relations with Southeast Asia, traditionally called Nanyang (or ‘South Seas’) by the Chinese, are extensive and deep-rooted on account of history, geography, and past migration in the region. China’s early contact with the individual societies of Southeast Asia can be traced back to truly ancient times, even though ‘China’s intercourse overland with the countries on its southern border is of much greater order of antiquity than its contacts by sea.’¹ By the Sung dynasty (960–1280) Imperial China had established tributary relations with many states in Southeast Asia, and the tribute-bearing missions were, as noted by the eminent Harvard historian, John K. Fairbank, often a convenient ‘cloak for trade’.² Fairbank has long stressed the importance of the Chinese maritime activities along the mainland coast and in Nanyang even prior to the famous expeditions by Admiral Zheng He (Cheng Ho) in the fifteenth century. Indeed, when European adventurers and traders eventually reached Southeast Asia in the sixteenth century, they found Chinese merchants already active in all the ports and on the main trade routes. Much of this commercial activity on the part of Chinese merchants stemmed directly or indirectly from the traditional tribute system, which was the principal means by which Imperial China conducted foreign relations with its neighbouring states.³