Economy and commerce

Standard & Poor’s affirmed Thursday its ‘B’ long and short-term sovereign credit ratings for Cambodia, adding that the outlook for the long-term rating remained stable. At the same time, the US rating agency affirmed its ‘axBB-‘ long-term and ‘axB’ short-term ASEAN regional-scale ratings on the country. ...

The Royal Cambodian government is continuing talks with US major Chevron regarding the delayed Block A offshore project that would be the Asean member nation’s first indigenous hydrocarbon development. In August 2010, eight years after being awarded the block, Chevron issued a declaration of commerciality and ...

A ban on imports of Cambodian seafood proposed by the European Commission (E.C.) is in direct response to Cambodian-flagged vessels complicit in illegal fishing in international waters, Jean-Francois Cautain, European Union (E.U.) ambassador to Cambodia, said Wednesday. The E.C. on Tuesday announced that Cambodia was “non-cooperating ...

Chea Serey, the daughter of National Bank Governor Chea Chanto, has been promoted to director-general of the central bank, she confirmed this week. Ms. Serey will replace Nguon Sokha, who said that she left the National Bank about a month ago after being appointed as a ...

Trade between Cambodia and China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has seen a 19- percent growth in the first nine months of the year thanks to robust bilateral trade ties, Benjamin Chau, deputy executive director of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, said here Wednesday. ...

The European Commission’s proposed ban on fish imports from Cambodia would cause no harm to the country’s fish exports since it has never sold fish to European countries, a Cambodian fisheries chief said Wednesday. “The sanctions, announced by the European Commission on Tuesday, do not affect ...

The administrator charged with liquidating bankrupt mobile operator Mfone filed a complaint Tuesday with the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, requesting it to order two companies to pay money owed to Mfone after repayment negotiations apparently failed, the administrator said. Mobile payment service WING Cambodia Co. Ltd. ...

The minimum wage for garment factory workers can only be raised if international clothing brands sourcing from Cambodia pay more for their products, a Ministry of Labor official said Tuesday. Khieu Savuth, chief of the Ministry of Labor’s labor conflict commission, laid down the challenge a ...

Against the backdrop of high electricity costs and energy imports, Cambodian businesses could save millions of dollars annually by implementing energy-efficient business practices, insiders said yesterday. “It is clear that energy efficiency has multiple benefits, not only to the tourism sector but also other economic sectors ...

For the first semester of 2013, Cambodia attracted 879, 782 tourist arrivals from ASEAN region, plus 23.5 per cent if compared in the same period of last year, a report from tourism ministry obtained on Tuesday said.  The figure of tourist arrivals from ASEAN for the ...

In a bid to make Cambodia more business-friendly, the government will cut back on red tape and reduce industry membership costs, Sun Chanthol, the new minister of commerce, said yesterday. Speaking to representatives from the private sector at a conference at the InterContinental Hotel in Phnom ...

Fish imports from Belize, Guinea and Cambodia are to be banned from the European Union, and three more countries have been warned their imports are in danger, in the first major sanction against countries that allow illegal fishing operations to carry on under their countries’ ...

The price of food spiked this month, and Cambodia’s low-paid garment workers are feeling the effects. Meat, vegetables, toothbrushes, beauty accessories and even the plastic bags they get packed in have all seen a sharp bump up in price this month, some items by as much ...

Cambodia imported 1.31 billion tonnes of oil in the first 10 months of this year, a 2.2 per cent slide compared to 1.34 billion tonnes in the same period last year, according to data from the Ministry of Commerce. Industry experts said the drop did not ...

As the cost of imports rise, local producers could see an opportunity to increase their market share, but for most a lack of output and quality means potential is limited, industry observers said yesterday. Customs officers who had often undercut the official rate are now ...

Construction on a new multi-purpose terminal at Sihanoukville Autonomous Port is expected to begin in early 2014 to support Cambodia’s rising exports, port officials said yesterday. The new terminal, linking sea to shore, will occupy three hectares and is expected to be finished by late 2016. ...

Following the recent wave of luxury car brands entering the Cambodian market, RMA Cambodia’s CEO said yesterday that the firm will bring in UK brands Land Rover and Jaguar by opening a showroom before the end of the year. The newly appointed official authorised dealer will ...

Tokyo-based Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone (PPSEZ) to help support Japanese investment in Cambodia. The MoU was signed by SMBC President and CEO Takeshi Kunibe and PPSEZ Chairwoman Lim Chhiv Ho earlier this ...

H&M has pledged to pay a living wage to 850,000 textile workers after expressing frustration over a lack of action by governments to address working conditions in Asian factories in the wake of the Rana Plaza disaster. The world’s second-biggest clothing retailer said it would support ...

Two ambitious trade negotiations are moving forward in the Asia Pacific, but Cambodia should first pursue a regional partnership before joining in with all of the Asia Pacific, trade experts say. Cambodia should build momentum on the existing Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, an Asean-driven agreement, before ...

A month after a company owned by tycoon Kith Meng was ordered to suspend logging the reservoir area of the controversial Lower Sesan II dam, the government yesterday threatened legal action against it if its orders aren’t followed. In a letter obtained by the Post yesterday, the Council ...

Average Cambodians are to pay the price for stamping out corruption in the customs department. Prices for basic goods, such as food and clothing, rose recently after the department was ordered last week to clean up its act and apply the official tax rate, importers told ...

As salt farmers in Kep and Kampot provinces prepare for the upcoming salt season, they have expressed concerns that unstable weather conditions could cause a supply shortage on the growing domestic market. Salt production in Cambodia usually starts in early January and ends in late ...

A development company with a government concession for a high-end property project on the island of Koh Pos, also known as Snake Island, has announced that it will significantly alter its original plans for the project. The new plan, which must first be submitted for ...