KUNMING, March 23 -- Trade between China and countries along the Mekong River posted steady growth last year despite COVID-19 and the sluggish global economy.

Thanks to deepened mutual trust and cooperation, China's trade volume with Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam totaled 416.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, up 5 percent year on year.

The figures were disclosed at the opening ceremony of Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Week 2023, which was held on Thursday in Kunming, the capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.

In 2016, the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation mechanism was launched by China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. It derives its name from a river that is called the Lancang in China and the Mekong in the five other countries.

The mechanism has since become a landmark cooperation model in the region, and it has continuously injected vitality into regional development.