Thailand
Cambodia set for more bilateral FTAs
The Cambodian government is pushing for the establishment of more bilateral free trade agreements with main trade partners in a bid to access wider markets for the country’s products.
Penn Sovicheat, under-secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce, said that the more bilateral FTAs, the wider markets Cambodia can export products to.
“When we have bilateral free trade agreements with many developing countries – China, Korea, and Japan, it is a positive sign to our economy and products,” Sovicheat told Khmer Times yesterday.
Prime Minister Hun Sen announced that the Cambodia-Korea free trade agreement will come into force in December this year, becoming the Kingdom’s second bilateral FTA after China.
The agreement will be a major driving force in boosting trade and investment flows between Cambodia and South Korea with mutual benefits, and will especially help accelerate the economic recovery of the two countries after the severe impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
It will contribute to the promotion of long-term partnerships and strengthen economic partnerships, particularly market access, including the export of Cambodian products to South Korea.
Cambodia mainly exported footwear and other apparel, travel products, beverages, electrical and electronic components, rubber, pharmaceuticals and agricultural products to South Korea.
The Kingdom imported vehicles, electronics, kitchen appliances, beverages, pharmaceuticals and finished plastics and products.
The two countries have ratified the free-trade agreement, which is set to deepen the economic ties.
The bilateral trade between Cambodia and South Korea reached $818 million in the first nine months of this year, up 13.8 percent compared with the same period last year, according to a report of the Korea International Trade Association (KITA).
Cambodia exported $301 million worth of goods to South Korea, which was a 19.6 percent year-on-year increase.
Sovicheat of the Commerce Ministry said that Cambodia plans to make negotiations on bilateral FTA establishment with Japan, India, and Mongolia etc.
Last week, Cambodia and the United Arab Emirates finished their first round of negotiation on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which will strengthen bilateral relations between both sides through opening market channels more widely and providing more opportunities for investment for mutual benefits and deepening cooperation in other economic activities.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501178750/cambodia-set-for-more-bilateral-ftas/