Trade preferences under the RCEP, Cambodia-China FTA and other trade preferences have given impetus to export growth. (Photo:khmertimeskh.com) Phnom Penh (VNA) – Cambodia’s total trade turnover with world partners topped 19.2 billion USD in the first five months of 2023, a decrease of 14% compared to the same period last year, according to data from the country’s Ministry of Economy and Finance.
The kingdom’s goods exports totaled nearly 9.2 billion USD, down 2.4% year-on-year, while imports accounted for more than 10 billion USD, a sharp fall of 22.6%.
Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak said knockdown in exports was due to impacts from geopolitical tensions and COVID-19 pandemic. However, the situation is expected to see a brighter outlook in the remaining months of the year.
Cambodia’s 10 biggest markets include China, the US, Vietnam, Thailand, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Germany, Taiwan (China) and Canada.
Main imports of the country include raw materials, construction materials, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, electronic equipment, fertilisers and pesticides. Its main exports consist of garments, footwear, travel goods, bicycles, rice, electrical appliances, rubber, furniture and vegetables.
Earlier on June 2, Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien and Cambodian Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak signed an agreement on enhancing bilateral trade in the 2023-2024 period, offering a range of preferential tariffs for advantageous products to enter the other’s market, thus facilitating trade between the two countries.
According to experts, the fresh agreement is more advanced than the ASEAN Trade in Goods. Agreement (ATIGA).
After eight extensions, the agreement has contributed to boosting two-way trade turnover between the two countries over the years. Especially, bilateral trade revenue recorded an average growth of 18.5% each year during the 2010-2015 period and over 21% during the 2015-2020 period./.
