The article discusses how China's economic ties with Southeast Asia have changed over time. It looks at the impact of trade and investment between China and ASEAN countries before and after a trade agreement in 2010. The findings show that while trade between China and ASEAN has increased, it hasn't grown as fast as expected. China now has a trade surplus with ASEAN, meaning it exports more to these countries than it imports. This could cause problems in the future. Additionally, Chinese investments in ASEAN are still relatively low compared to investments from other parts of the world.