Chinese Premier Li Qiang is visiting Malaysia, the third stop of his official visits to New Zealand, Australia and Malaysia from June 13 to 20.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia. The infographic below highlights key aspects of China-Malaysia relations over the past half a century, focusing on diplomatic, economic, cultural and tourism cooperation.

China and Malaysia established formal diplomatic relations in 1974. The two countries established the China-Malaysia comprehensive strategic partnership in 2013. Last year, China and Malaysia reached an important consensus on building a China-Malaysia community with a shared future.

In 2023, Malaysia was China's second largest trading partner in ASEAN and its 10th largest trading partner in the world. China has been Malaysia's largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years. Total trade between the two sides stood at $190 billion last year.

With 1.47 million trips to Malaysia made by Chinese tourists, China became Malaysia's largest source of tourists outside ASEAN last year. Since December 1, 2023, China has implemented visa-free travel for Malaysia while Malaysia has removed visa requirements for Chinese travelers.