Economy and commerce

Cambodian Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak put forward a proposal last week requesting that the World Trade Organization (WTO) share information of bilateral and regional trade agreements with all its members to help smaller economies integrate into global trade markets. ...

The Agriculture Ministry has said it can’t control illegal imports of livestock from neighbouring countries, arguing customs officials must take responsibility for the issue.​ ...

Denis Hew, director of the policy support unit at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Secretariat said that Cambodia and Laos, in particular, should seek to chart a different course in Asean rather than following growth models of more developed economies, such as Malaysia or Thailand. ...

Shares in Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (PAS), the state-owned enterprise that operates Cambodia’s only deep-sea port, debuted on Cambodia’s stock exchange yesterday after an initial public offering that raised $27 million.​ ...

The International Monetary Fund says Cambodia’s young population compared with other regional countries will be a driving force for financial development and contribute to the emerging finance technology sector, or Fintech.  ...

Banking sector leaders have expressed concern over a new government decree that places additional fees on financial services, warning that the costs of what some have described as an “impractical and inefficient” tax would likely be passed along to consumers. ...

Cambodia’s central bank is to conduct on-site audits of microfinance institutions to check if they are complying with the interest rate cap that came into force more than two months ago, industry insiders have said.   ...

Aceleda Bank, Cambodia’s largest bank by assets, reported a net profit of $28.39 million in first quarter this year, down slightly from $30.19 million in the same period in 2016, according to the bank’s latest financial report. ...

Long-term growth prospects for developing economies, including Cambodia, will continue to be undermined by a lack of investment as well as the risk of increased protectionist policies by the United States, which could hamper the growth of commodity-driven economies, according to a new report released ...

Bun Mony, advisor to the Cambodian Microfinance Association (CMA) noted that though the interest rate cap could lower revenue and cut profit margins in the sector, overall neither the election nor the cap would have a lasting impact for the industry.​ ...

Acleda Bank has provided $40 million to customers in the form of housing loans since the start of 2017, marking a growing trend of home loans being taken out across the country. ...

South Korean food chain Lotteria, operated locally by Yinkok Food Corp, has expanded in Phnom Penh with its fifth branch opening in Dem Tkov market, according to a local media report yesterday. ...

Cambodia is one of the emerging nations that attracts foreign investors in the real estate sector, thanks to its growth and good performance, according to a recent report from PropertyGuru. ...

The Papua New Guinea-based Bank South Pacific has announced its expansion into Asia with its first Cambodian branch. ...

Mizuho Bank, one of largest banks in Japan, has started operations in Cambodia with its first branch in Phnom Penh. ...

A branch of the cash and carry supermarket Makro will open in Phnom Penh by the end of the year after construction kicked off at an official groundbreaking ceremony yesterday. ...

Listed industrial park operator Phnom Penh SEZ reported revenue of $1.46 million for the first quarter of 2017, a decline of $1.72 million, or nearly 54 percent, compared with the same period last year, according to a filing yesterday on the Cambodia Securities Exchange. ...

Bank South Pacific (BSP), Papua New Guinea’s largest bank, signed a joint venture deal with RMA Cambodia to enter the Cambodian asset finance market, according to a media report yesterday. ...

Cambodia’s customs department counted less than 1 percent of the sand Singapore reported importing from Cambodia last year, according to trade statistics. The new data is the latest addition to a more than 77 million ton gap from 2007 to last year that the governments ...

Makro Cambodia, the local arm of international cash-and-carry wholesaler Makro, held a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday for construction of its first outlet in the Kingdom, which is expected to launch operations in December. ...

The Ministry of Commerce is urging local and foreign businesses to register their trademarks in Cambodia via a new online system.Commerce Minister Pan Sorasak said the system will serve both the public and private sector and make it easier for organisations to protect their intellectual ...

Cash may be king in Cambodia, but Pi Pay Asia is banking on rising smartphone penetration and an arsenal of digital payment solutions to help dethrone it.The company’s soon-to-be-released mobile-phone application provides a one-stop platform for cashless transactions, digital money transfers and e-wallet solutions, while ...

Acleda Bank spent about $1 million to produce 800,000 new ATM cards with EMV chips to enable them to be used globally and also to mitigate the risk of fraud, said the bank’s president and group managing director on Friday. ...

Cambodian telecom Smart Axiata retained healthy growth in the first quarter, with revenue rising 17 percent year-on-year to 318,000,000 ringgit ($74.5 million), fuelled by data monetisation and effective cost management despite aggressive price competition by other telecommunication players, according to financials released by Malaysian parent ...