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Cambodia: Chinese investors pumped money into Kingdom despite pandemic in 2021
In spite of the adverse effects caused by the pandemic, Chinese investment in Cambodia had increased significantly in 2021, reflecting the trust in the Kingdom’s business landscape, officials and experts noted.
According to a report from the Council for the Development of Cambodia, Cambodia attracted a fixed-asset investment of $2.32 billion from China last year, up 67 percent from $1.39 billion in the year before.
It further said China topped the foreign investment list in the Southeast Asian nation, accounting for 53.4 percent of the total investment of 4.35 billion dollars the kingdom approved last year, the same report revealed.
Close ties, the Cambodia-China Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade deal are thought to be key factors in attracting more Chinese investors to Cambodia, according to Heng Sokkung, secretary of state and spokesman for the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation.
“I believe that these free trade agreements, together with Cambodia’s favourable investment law, peace and political stability, have provided a great opportunity for foreign investors, particularly Chinese ones, to invest in Cambodia,” Sokkung was quoted as telling Xinhua.
Both the CCFTA and the 15-member RCEP trade deal took effect on Jan 1, 2022.
Sokkung also attributed the increase in foreign investment to a high COVID-19 vaccination rate, which has allowed Cambodia to fully reopen since mid-November last year, describing it as a “conducive atmosphere for attracting both foreign investors and tourists”.
China’s investment in Cambodia revolved around real estate, garment, footwear and travel goods industry, tourism and agriculture, among others.
“Chinese investment has not only brought in new capital, but also advanced technologies for Cambodia’s socio-economic development,” Sokkung said.
Meanwhile, the close-ties between China and Cambodia besides the Belt and Road Initiative are also the major factors attracting more Chinese investors to the kingdom, opined Lim Heng, vice-president of the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce.
“Chinese investment, especially during the pandemic, is essential to help boost Cambodia’s economy and create new jobs for Cambodian people.
“Both the CCFTA and RCEP free trade deal would provide greater market access for Cambodian products to China and other RCEP member countries,” he was reported as saying.
An economist from the Royal Academy of Cambodia, Hong Vannak said besides these free trade pacts, Cambodia has received trade preferences from some countries, which are also a favorable factor for foreign investors to base their production lines here.
“Chinese investors are keen to explore investment opportunities overseas, and Cambodia is one of their most favorite destinations thanks to our excellent ties, enormous potential for investment, investment incentives, and inexpensive labour resources,” he told Xinhua.
“There’s no doubt that Chinese investors will continue to come to Cambodia in coming years, and our bilateral trade volume will be bigger,” he said.
The Ministry of Commerce revealed that the trade volume between Cambodia and China was valued at nearly $11.2 billion, up 38 percent from 2020.
The ministry’s undersecretary of state and spokesman Penn Sovicheat described China as a ‘huge market’ for Cambodia especially for products such as rice, bananas and mangoes, among others.
“Under the CCFTA and the RCEP trade pact, we hope Cambodia’s export to the Chinese market will be larger, especially the export of agricultural produce, industrial products, and processing goods,” added Sovicheat.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501037593/chinese-investors-pumped-money-into-kingdom-despite-pandemic-in-2021/