Trade with Seoul on upswing this year

Tuesday, 24 May 2011
May Kunmakara
Phnom Penh Post

CAMBODIA’S trade with the Republic of Korea increased more than an annualised 40 percent in the first quarter of 2011, according to statistics from the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency.

Korea’s exports to Cambodia totalled US$101 million during the first quarter, from $71 million in the quarter last year, while shipments in the other direction increased some 56 percent to $16.4 million during the same period, the data show.

The Korean Chamber of Commerce in Cambodia Chairman Kang Nam-Shik said many Korean investors were coming to research the opportunities in Cambodia.

“Korean investors contact me to look at the business environment in Cambodia, particularly looking at setting up garment factories, over the last six months,” he said.

“Cambodia will be a great business partner for Korea over the next five to 10 years.”

International buyers, particularly based in the United States, were increasingly turning to Cambodia as well as Indonesia for labour-intensive productions, given the rising costs in other countries.

He stressed the necessity of maintaining fair import and export policies in order to encourage trade.

Cambodia’s major exports to Korea are crude rubber, agricultural products, apparel and clothing, metal scrap and footwear.

Korea’s main exports to Cambodia are textile yarn and fabrics, vehicles, finished apparel and clothing, and tobacco products, according to the data.

Nam-Shik Kang highlighted particular growth areas in bilateral trade.

“Recent bilateral export-import growth is not only garment raw materials, but also agricultural products, electronic machines, and other industrial goods,” he said.

Cambodia-Korea trade grew more than 29 percent year-on-year in 2010 to $376.4 million, according to KOTRA’s data.