Asian countries urged to liberalise

• May 22, 2018

Cambodia’s commerce minister on Monday encouraged counterparts in India and the three other Asean countries included in the CLMV group (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam) to strengthen their relationships, in hopes that collaboration will further boost economies and reinforce trade.

Speaking at the fifth edition of the India-CLMV business summit in Phnom Penh, which focused on collaboration, Pan Sorasak, Cambodia’s commerce minister, said that India and CLMV countries have to further liberalise their economies. He said the five countries should seek to prevent protectionist policies, strengthen multilateral trading systems.

“For promoting trade flows and the regional value chain, Asean and India have liberalised over 90 percent of the total tariff lines,” he said, adding that foreign direct investment (FDI) flows from India to Asean have increased from $960 million in 2015 to $1.05 billion in 2016.

The India-CLMV business summit, which seeks to promote regional partnerships, is making its first appearance in the Kingdom, where is will take place over two days.

Suresh Prabhu, minister of commerce in India, said on Monday that “we look forward to announcing further collaboration with Cambodia”. The Kingdom is a preferred destination for Indian firms due to its investment friendly environment and dollarised economy.

Source: https://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/asian-countries-urged-liberalise