Tourism industry players have welcomed the increase in domestic tourism as a key step towards restoring Cambodia’s embattled tourism sector back to pre-pandemic levels, but stressed that it was still necessary to find ways to attract international tourists due to their expected longer stays and higher spending power. According to latest figures from the Ministry of Tourism, the first three full weekends of May 2022 saw a total of 993,309 domestic trips made: 299,888 in the first week (May 7-8), 390,609 in the second week (May 14-15), and 302,812 in the third week (May 21-22). Cambodia Association of Travel Agents…
Author: Hin Pisei
The global rise in fuel prices caused by the Ukraine conflict has pushed shipping prices in Cambodia up by 15-20 per cent compared to April, transport industry insiders and exporters have said, causing production costs in the Kingdom to rise across the board as a result. On May 23, the retail price of regular-grade petrol increased by 0.9 per cent, while that of diesel decreased by 6.9 per cent, according to a notice issued by the Ministry of Commerce. For the May 21-31 period, the retail sale prices of fuel in the Kingdom have been set at 5,600 riel ($1.38)…
Bilateral trade between Cambodia and Malaysia was worth $205.2 million in the first four months of 2022, surging by over one-third from nearly $152.9 million from the corresponding period last year, according to Customs. In January-April, Cambodian exports to Malaysia amounted to $35.2 million, down by 1.9 per cent year-on-year, while imports were $170 million, up by 46 per cent on a yearly basis, General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia data show. Cambodia’s trade deficit with Malaysia expanded to $134.8 million over the same period. Hong Vanak, director of International Economics at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, stressed…
Cambodia exported $1.57297 billion worth of agricultural products in the first four months of this year, according to the agriculture ministry on May 20. Broken down by category, paddy accounted for $296.72 million, or 18.86 per cent of the total, milled rice $189.07 million (12.02 per cent), and other goods $1.08719 billion (69.12 per cent), the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries reported. Non-rice agriculture products exported in January-April weighed in at 2,762,563 tonnes, comprising – among other items – cassava, cashew nuts, corn, mung beans, soybeans, bananas, pomelos, mangoes, palm oil, peppercorn, tobacco and vegetables. Meanwhile, paddy and milled-rice…
Cambodia and Singapore have pledged to step up cooperation to bolster bilateral trade, after registering more than $5.2 billion last year, marking a nearly 50 per cent jump over 2020. The commitment was made at a bilateral meeting on May 18 between Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak and his Singaporean counterpart Gan Kim Yong in Bali, Indonesia. Sorasak took the occasion to thank Gan for the Singaporean Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s support for Cambodia’s ASEAN chairmanship, pledging to work hard to spur bilateral trade. “We are committed to continuing cooperation to bolster bilateral trade between Cambodia and Singapore, taking…
Cambodia imported iron and steel worth $119.72 million in the first four months of 2022, marking an increase of 19 per cent over the $101 million recorded in the same period last year, according to Customs. This accounted for 1.192 per cent of the Kingdom’s total goods imports over January-April, valued at $10.043 billion, statistics from the General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia indicate. Last month alone, iron and steel imports stood at $35.63 million – up 83.6 per cent from $19.41 million in April 2021 – accounting for 29.8 per cent of the four-month total. April’s figure…
Unseasonal rains and adverse climatic conditions have decimated Cambodia’s salt production, and as the harvest season comes to a close, industry insiders fear output could end up as low as one-fifth of last year’s levels, obliging the Kingdom to import the essential mineral to meet domestic demand. The coastal provinces of Kampot and Kep are Cambodia’s primary salt producers, and the harvest season typically lasts from late December to mid-May, or even until June with hotter and drier conditions. But the door is closing on time to collect salt, with the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology declaring May 15…
The Mekong Tourism Forum is set to be held in Hoi An, Vietnam from October 3-8, the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) has announced, and is expected to contribute to revitalisation and boosting of the Greater Mekong Subregion’s (GMS) hard-hit tourism sector. The announcement was made during an MTCO meeting on May 12, in which the Cambodian side was represented by Seang Neak, Ministry of Tourism deputy director-general for Tourism Development and International Cooperation. Other issues discussed during the meeting included tourism recovery achievements amongst GMS countries, the GMS tourism rehabilitation plan, ways to promote tourism within the subregion and…
The Kingdom’s trade volume reached $17.65 billion in the first four months of this year, up 15.47 per cent versus the $15.28 billion to the same period last year, according to the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE). The export volume in January-April reached $7.61 billion, an increase of 32.06 per cent from $5.76 billion in the same period last year. Import volume accounted for $10.04 billion, up 5.44 per cent year-on-year from $9.52 billion. The Kingdom’s trade deficit in the period narrowed by 35.27 per cent to $2.44 billion, from 3.76 billion in January-April 2021, GDCE statistics indicate.…
Cambodia exported rubber and articles thereof to the tune of $149.80 million in the first four months of 2022, representing an increase of 16.5 per cent year-on-year from $128.58 million, according to the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE). These accounted for nearly 1.97 per cent of the Kingdom’s total exports over the January-April period, worth $7.6063 billion. Last month alone, exports of rubber and rubber products amounted to $32.11 million, rising by 73.5 per cent year-on-year versus $18.5 million in April 2021, GDCE figures show. Him Aun, head of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries’ General Directorate…