Cambodia welcomed more than 1.914 million international visitors in the first 11 months of 2022, up nearly 12-fold on-year, in an improvement largely attributed to effective pandemic management and the relatively early adoption of a “Living with Covid” approach. However, this is still down 67.55 per cent compared to the 5.898 million booked for the same period of record-breaking 2019, according to the Ministry of Tourism. Of the January-November arrivals, 1.466 million or 76.60 per cent declared “holiday” as their purpose of visit, 381,482 or 19.93 per cent marked “business”, while 66,484 or 3.47 per cent indicated other motives, ministry…
Author: Hin Pisei
Cambodia and the US traded goods worth $8.510 billion in the first 11 months of 2022, marking gains of 21.79 per cent on-year, with Cambodian exports to the world’s largest economy accounting for a 96.56 per cent share, according to the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE). In the January-November period, Cambodian exports amounted to $8.218 billion, up 23.01 per cent year-on-year, and imports $292.798 million, down 4.78 per cent. The Kingdom’s trade surplus with the US for the 11-month period expanded by 24.35 per cent, from $6.373 billion to $7.925 billion. The US remained the largest buyer of…
Cambodian “iron and steel” imports in the first 11 months of 2022 clocked in at $327.412 million, rising by 22.6 per cent year-on-year from $267.156 million, according to Customs. This category of items, corresponding to Chapter 72 of the harmonised tariff schedule, accounted for 1.180 per cent of the $27.747 billion value of the Kingdom’s total imports over the 11 months, General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE) statistics show. Last month alone, the Kingdom imported $25.544 millions worth, up 15.8 per cent from $22.067 million in November 2021, but down 15.1 per cent from $30.090 million in October 2022.…
A total of 20,574 companies, with cumulative “registered share capital” of $5.77 billion, were successfully registered on the Online Business Registration Platform – also known as the “Single Portal” – as of December 26 at 2pm, the Online Business Registration Service (“OBRS”) reported. Additionally, as of December 26 at 2pm, 12,900 companies have made reservations to complete the registration process at a later date. Although no registration applications had been rejected as of December 26, two reservation requests have been declined. The government launched the platform on June 15, 2020 to streamline the registration process for companies, as part of…
The government issued construction permits for 3,827 projects nationwide in January-November 2022 with total registered capital of $2.635 billion – down by 98 developments and 49.42 per cent in terms of value over the same time last year, according to a Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction report. During the period, the ministry and sub-national authorities respectively issued construction permits for 202 and 3,625 projects valued at $2.088 billion and $547.21 million, the report said, adding that the projects represent a total floor area of 6.597 million square metres. From 2000 to November 2022, the government issued construction…
Official fresh Cambodian banana exports clocked in at 325,859.72 tonnes in the first 10 months of 2022, down 11.79 per cent year-on-year, with China buying up an 89.93 per cent share, according to a Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries report. The January-October exports went to just three countries – China (293,060.39 tonnes; down 9.33% on-year), Vietnam (32,799.23 tonnes; down 27.39%) and Japan (0.1 tonnes; down 99.98%) Hun Lak, CEO of Longmate Agriculture Co Ltd, a company that grows bananas in Kampot province and exports the fresh fruit to China, largely blamed the declines on Beijing’s “dynamic zero-Covid” strategy, which…
The 2023 salt harvest is expected to arrive in the second week of January, industry insiders claim, as imports of the essential mineral prompted by a shortfall in output have been put on ice. Heavy rainfall this year drove down salt production to the range of 30-40 kilotonnes nationwide, according to insider reports, despite estimates putting the annual domestic demand at 70-100 kilotonnes. To make up for the deficit, the government authorised the private sector to import up to 60 kilotonnes. The vast majority of the Kingdom’s salt farms are in Kampot province and neighbouring Kep, and the harvest season…
The Ministry of Tourism has issued a set of instructions for the competent officials nationwide to ensure Covid-19 prevention and control as well as the overall quality of the Kingdom’s tourism products, particularly on December 31 and January 1. Heads of provincial tourism departments are confirming that their agencies are ready to comply. In a circular dated December 22, the ministry laid out four main directions: firstly – encourage the “consistent and rigorous” implementation of government-issued Covid-19 prevention measures. Secondly: promote adherence with the pertinent tourism safety rules and standard operating procedures (SOP). Thirdly: guide the management of local tourist…
Cambodia exported $346.034 million worth of goods to Australia in the first 11 months of 2022, nearly doubling on-year with a 97.57 per cent rise, according to the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE). This represented 72.33 per cent of the merchandise trade between the two countries during the January-November period, or $478.404 million, which was up 69.68 per cent year-on-year. Meanwhile, Cambodian imports from Australia were to the tune of $132.370 million, up 23.94 per cent on a yearly basis. The Kingdom’s trade surplus with Australia for the 11-month period expanded by 212.7 per cent on-year to reach…
The second round of formal negotiations for the Cambodia-United Arab Emirates Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CAM-UAE CEPA) concluded on December 21, further building confidence in the bilateral treaty’s reinforcing effects on economic growth in the Kingdom. This three-day follow-up round of talks was held in Phnom Penh, nearly two months after the first, which was organised in the Emirati capital of Abu Dhabi from December 19-21. A CEPA is a type of free trade agreement (FTA) that is generally designed for a more holistic coverage beyond just commodities, and can contain provisions for services, investments, dispute resolution, intellectual property rights,…