Axiata Group sold a 10 percent stake of its Cambodian subsidiary Smart Axiata to Japanese group Mitsui Co Ltd to form a strategic partnership and further the firm’s activity in the Kingdom, according to a company release on Friday. ...

Almost 100 people from Boeung Snor village gathered at Banteay Meanchey’s Provincial Hall yesterday, demanding that provincial authorities resolve a 13-year-old dispute involving land promised to a group of Khmer Rouge defectors by the government in 1997. ...

Police have summoned the CNRP’s top party boss in Phnom Penh to appear for questioning today about a clash between a motorbike driver and a group of opposition supporters campaigning earlier this week in the capital. ...

Asian election monitor Anfrel yesterday commended authorities, citizens and political parties for Sunday’s smooth commune elections, but stopped short of calling the ballot “free and fair”, raising concerns over the heightened political rhetoric in the run-up to June 4. ...

Despite vows by both major political parties to increase female representation in politics, women made up only a small proportion of commune chiefs chosen in this month’s elections, though some gains were made by the opposition party.   ...

The Thai government on Wednesday publicly announced that nationals of five countries, including Cambodia, can visit Thailand for up to 90 days without a visa to seek medical treatment, an official at the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh said yesterday. ...

King Norodom Sihamoni will once again be out of Cambodia on the day that widely condemned new laws are due to be signed into force, prompting some observers to suggest he is abstaining from affixing his signature to politically questionable legislation. ...

Taking stock of his party’s June commune elections losses, CNRP president Kem Sokha has embarked on a countrywide tour to gather feedback and intelligence the party can use to steer its national election campaign, party officials said on Tuesday. ...

U.S. companies doing business in Cambodia are optimistic about the country’s overall investment environment, but remain dissatisfied with the supply of cheap and skilled labor, corruption, tax structure, and attitudes toward the U.S., according to a new survey. ...

An opinion piece published by government mouthpiece Fresh News suggests, among other things, dissolving the Cambodia National Rescue Party and allocating its National Assembly seats to five minor parties, including Funcinpec, which plans to sue for the dissolution of CNRP. ...

A company based in China’s southern province of Guangdong opened a 2-hectare market for building and construction materials near the Preah Monivong Bridge in Phnom Penh on Saturday, according to a report by online Chinese news site Commercial News. ...

The National Assembly yesterday passed a trade remedy law that aims to protect and help local and foreign businesses by introducing anti-dumping measures that prevent the “dishonest” import of goods and produce from neighbouring countries, according to a press release. ...

Ruling Cambodian People’s Party member Yin Bunnang will take the seat of recently deceased lawmaker Im Sethy, representing Kampong Cham province, the National Assembly announced yesterday. The assembly also selected a lawmaker to replace Sethy on the justice commission. ...

A REDD Programme representative yesterday said it would be concerning if recent claims of the military systematically clearing protected forest in Oddar Meanchey province covered under the scheme proved true – though a third-party company has dismissed the claims as outdated. ...

Minister of Public Works and Transport Sun Chanthol yesterday signed a $44 million contract with Chinese company Beijing Urban Construction Group Co Ltd to carry out sewage and road improvement projects in Battambang, Poipet and Bavet towns, among other projects. ...

Bilateral trade between Cambodia and Indonesia amounted to $492.7 million in the first 11 months of last year, a 23 percent increase compared to the same period in 2016, according to a report from an Indonesian state-run news agency. ...

Aliwassa Pathnadabutr, managing director of property consultant CBRE Thailand, said prime residential property for rent in the Cambodian capital has posted the highest yield among all sectors at 8% per year. Selling prices remain relatively low, but rents are high. ...

In recent years, communities displaced by sugar plantations have attempted to reclaim their land by targeting the plantations’ investors and buyers overseas, but a study published last week in the peer-reviewed Journal of Civil Society suggests such efforts may disappoint. ...

Members of the opposition CNRP have decided to boycott the National Assembly’s (NA) plenary session today, saying amendments to the law on political parties which are being debated today will lead to national disunity and run contrary to democratic principles. ...

As part of an ongoing Japan-funded project to reduce congestion in the capital’s clogged streets, City Hall turned on three new traffic lights on Wednesday in Phnom Penh—with two more set to follow today.   ...