The Cambodia Gems and Jewelry Fair 2013 opened in Phnom Penh on June 13 at Koh Pich Convention and Exhibition Centre, the Cambodian News Agency (AKP) reported.

It is an international annual event in Cambodia, said Senior Minister and Minister of Commerce Cham Prasidh, stressing gems and jewelry industry is being one of the key trade promotional areas and plays an important role in the tourism sector.

The fair will be able to attract major investors to see the gems and jewelry potential in Cambodia, he added.

“We believe that going forward, with a lot of tax preferential or tax-free treatment extended to Cambodia as one of the least developed countries by many developed nations, gems and jewelry traders around the region might move their base to Cambodia to take advantage,” the agency quoted the Senior Minister as saying.

The four-day event, the 5th of its kind, attracted 78 local and foreign companies to display their products on 90 booths.

Last year, 69 jewelry and gems companies from Cambodia, Hong Kong and Taiwan (China), India, Israel, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and the UK, attended the fair, up from 67 in 2011, 49 in 2010 and 10 in 2009.-VNA