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Logistics providers in Cambodia face bankruptcy because of COVID-19
Cambodia Logistics Association (CLA) has voiced its concern over the severe impact on the logistics and transport sector stemming from COVID-19 pandemic.
“We face imminent bankruptcy while some have already folded and declared they are bankrupts.”
Sin Chanthy, president of Cambodia Logistics Association told Khmer Times that the outbreak of COVID-19 has affected all sorts of businesses; especially logistics and transportation globally as well as Cambodia. He said that this sector has been continuing to impact the sector significantly.
“CLA is asking for more assistance from the government and relevant stakeholders to solve the critical issues during the hard-hit situation,” Sin said.
According to Sin, hundreds of logistics and transportation companies employees in Cambodia are losing their jobs, and will soon close business operations and activities if the situation drags on with no solutions in sight.
At present, airline companies have started to suspend or cut back on their operations and activities while the prices of air transport is rising dramatically. Plus, border transports are either closed or restricted.
Sin said that a lot of logistics and transportation companies are incurring additional costs on face masks, gloves, and alcohol-gel-sanitisers, to protect their staff from getting infected by the COVID-19 virus and some are deskbound, further impacting their business a tivitiees as there are no takers for their services.
“The landlords have also not reduced rentals and while we are incurring losses and face imminent bankruptcy, we still have to pay our rentals. The landlords are not sympathetic to our cause and are insisting on we paying rental as usual although we have hardly any income.”
He said that the suspension in order of goods by garment factories, footwear, and travel bags from buyers in the US and EU markets has also affected the transport businesses and activities. In addition to this, the delayed payment from customers, has affected the cash fow of the transport and logistic companies and some are not able to pay their bank loan.
CLA said that the ongoing tax audit from the taxation department in both the capital and provinces and expense on the administration and commission fee for releasing the cargos for shipment are major impediments to the transport and logistics companies.
“The Tax Department have a task to do to collect revenue for the state budget. However, they should be more sensitive to our plight and should delay the audits until we are back on our feet. Rising costs, almost zero revenue, lack of support from the port authorities are affecting us to the extend that some have already gone bankrupt,”Mr Sin says.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50716985/logistics-providers-in-cambodia-face-bankruptcy-because-of-covid-19/