Despite lower exports, trade with Thailand up 35 percent

[geovalin]

Trade between Cambodia and neighbouring Thailand expanded by more than 35 percent last year driven by strong economic growth in both nations. According to data from the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh, bilateral trade reached $8.4 billion in 2018, a jump of 35.5 percent from 2017’s $6.1 billion. However, Cambodia’s exports declined, reaching only $768 million in value, a decrease of 14.1 percent year-on-year. Imports from Thailand, meanwhile, grew by nearly 44 percent, reaching an impressive $7.6 billion.

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Lim Heng, vice president of the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce, pointed out that Cambodia’s economy performed very strongly last year, backed by solid growth in construction and tourism, which allowed the country to increase imports from Thailand. “Our economy has been performing very well while our people keep on spending, particularly in two main sectors, construction and tourism,” he said. “We imported a lot of construction materials, foodstuffs and consumer goods from Thailand because we simply could not produce enough to meet domestic demand.”

 

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