Economy and commerce
Hun Sen Announces Tax on Land Concessions
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday amended a directive on economic land concession (ELC) taxes, which will mean that owners of agricultural ELCs must pay tax of $5 on every hectare of land after the fifth year of ownership, according to the Council of Ministers. Mr. ...
Garment industry stokes Cambodia’s political growth
Under dazzling white strip-lights, a production line of young Cambodians stitch, iron and fold their way to the day’s target of 820 two-piece children’s pajamas. These garments are destined for the shelves of Los Angeles, shop price $9.97. The workers, mostly women, start at 7:30 ...
The arrival of the ASEAN Economic Community will likely be delayed
ASEAN leaders have proposed putting off the planned launch of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) until the end of 2015, instead of the beginning of that year, so each member state will have more time to prepare for the single market, according to Cambodian Commerce ...
Cambodia records 1.51 bln trade deficit in 7 months
Cambodia reported a trade deficit of 34 percent in equivalent to 1.51 billion U.S. dollars in the first seven of this year, the report of the Commerce Ministry showed on Thursday. During January-July period this year, the country’s total import and export value was 7.45 billion ...
http://www.nzweek.com/world/cambodia-records-1-51-bln-trade-deficit-in-7-months-7684/
Water Wars Feared Over Mekong
China’s dam building spree on the upper Mekong River raises new tensions over water resources Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang obviously had China in mind when he warned recently that tensions over water resources are not only threatening economic growth but presenting a source of conflict Cambodia, ...
http://www.rfa.org/english/east-asia-beat/mekong-09302012160353.html
UAE- Lubna Al Qasimi heads Trade delegation to Cambodia and Thailand
Sheikha Lubna Bint Khalid Al Qasimi, Minister of Foreign Trade will lead a delegation on Monday to Cambodia and Thailand to discuss strengthening trade and investment ties with these countries. The delegation also included officials and representatives from national institutions and companies. ...
Cambodia's highly competitive mobile phone industry poised for change
The nation is awash with SIM cards, and that is indicative of an industry that, as most observers see it, is simply overcrowded. But [mobile phone] operators, despite their special promotions and a young population in love with phones, are finding themselves squeezed as margins ...
Meeting sets out action plan for women's economic empowerment
Poor education and a lack of skills are still major challenges for Cambodian women and a recent meeting in Phnom Penh with the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the United Nations Development Program set out to validate an action plan on women’s economic empowerment that ...
Cambodia to levy economic land concessions tax
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday ordered investors in economic land concessions (ELC) to pay tax from the sixth year of their investment in a bid to speed up their agricultural production. The premier decided that investment companies receiving ELCs must pay the land tax ...
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-09/28/c_131880215.htm
Alliance an advocate for industry
The executive committee of the Alliance of Rice Producers and Exporters of Cambodia, ARPEC, decided earlier this month to set up a commercial arm to help members get financing for a variety of rice-related activities. According to ARPEC secretary-general Hun Lak and deputy secretary-general David Van, ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/Special-Reports/alliance-an-advocate-for-industry.html
Piaggio's Vespa Scoots Back Into Phnom Penh
Vespa, the iconic Italian scooter, is now officially available for purchase in Cambodia-again. Italy-based automobile company Piaggio, in cooperation with the local Narita Group, opened the doors yesterday to the country’s first licensed Vespa dealership. The new Vespas range in price from $2,950 for the ...
Now available: certified chemical-free vegetables
In May, the first group of vegetable producers in Cambodia was certified on the basis of COrAA’s “Standards for Chemical-free Crop Production”. The 72 farmers, belonging to the Women Chemical-free vegetable-producing group of the Vegetable Supply Co-operative in Svay Rieng, have been producing healthy vegetables for ...
Rising world demand for Cambodian organic rice
Several ASEAN countries, including Cambodia, have witnessed a growing demand for organic rice that local producers cannot satisfy, according to Winfried Scheewe, adviser to the Cambodian Organic Agriculture Association (COrAA). Scheewe says demand for organic rice is on the rise, especially in the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore, but also ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/Special-Reports/cambodian-organic-rice-on-demand.html
Kenya wants flights and rice imports
The Ambassador of African country Kenya, Richard Titus Ekai, told Deputy Prime Minister Sok An on Wednesday that he would like to see direct flights between Phnom Penh and Nairobi. Sok An met Kenyan Ambassador Ekai at his office to discuss the initiative regarding direct flights ...
Court Questions Unionist on Incitement Charges
The Kandal Provincial Court yesterday questioned labor leader Rong Chhun over allegations he incited garment factory workers to stage an illegal strike, a court official said. A director at the Tai Yang garment factory in Ang Snuol district- which supplies apparel to U.S. brands Levi Strauss, ...
Union boss grilled on incitement allegation
The president of the Cambodian Confederation of Unions Rong Chhun appeared in Kandal Provincial Court for nearly three hours yesterday, fielding questions stemming from accusations of incitement and defamation, the union boss said. According to Chhun, his appearance was related to a complaint alleging that he had incited ...
Million-tonne goal still a challenge
It has been more than two years since the Cambodian government issued a rice export policy in June 2010, aiming to export a million tonnes of milled rice by 2015. However, a shortage of capital to buy unmilled rice, known as “paddy”, together with high ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/Special-Reports/million-tonne-goal-still-a-challenge.html
New ADB-Cambodia director vows to focus on inclusive growth, boosting partnership
Newly-appointed Asian Development Bank’s director for Cambodia Eric Sidgwick said Wednesday that promoting inclusive and environmentally sustainable growth that will help improve the quality of life of Cambodians, especially those who are most vulnerable, are his key focus areas. “This is an exciting time to be ...
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/business/2012-10/10/c_131897620.htm
Mind the wage gap
Most mornings, garment worker Vicheka buys food from the street vendors outside her factory in Kampong Chhnang province. The beef and pork dishes, she says, have a tendency to give workers a stomach ache – a reputation forged long before Vicheka and her co-workers at ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2012092858979/National-news/mind-the-wage-gap.html
Cambodia hits oil revenue
Officials yesterday confirmed that the Cambodian government will receive a majority of the revenue share from Chevron’s offshore Block A oil permit area near Sihanoukville in the Gulf of Thailand. The government expects to issue the American oil giant a production permit licence by the ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2012092858984/Business/cambodia-hits-oil-revenue.html
Stirrings from B Kak developer
After months of inactivity that has fueled questions about the company’s future, Boeung Kak lake developer Shukaku Inc has launched a recruitment drive, calling for at least half a dozen architects, engineers and other employees. When contacted yesterday, Sok Heng Ly, an administrative employee listed in the ...
Tiger goes terminal, and adds India and Cambodia cities
Tiger Airways reverses its ‘terminal’ thinking at long last in Singapore, and adds new cities in Cambodia and India. .. Tiger Airways is adding Hyderabad, India (tomorrow) and Phnom Penh, Cambodia (next Monday) to its reach only days after shifting up market into Singapore’s main terminal ...
Foreign tourists to Cambodia likely to reach 3.3 million in 2012: PM
Cambodia is expected to receive 3.3 million foreign tourists this year, a 15 percent rise year-on-year, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thursday. “The country’s cultural and eco-tourism has seen remarkable development, there is steady growth from year to year,” he said in a message to mark ...
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-09/27/c_131876653.htm
KBank sees potential for bancassurance in Laos, Cambodia
Kasikornbank aims to expand its bancassurance business into neighbouring countries after finding that customers in Laos and Cambodia incur higher medical expenses. Pakorn Partanapat, executive vice president, said that the bank has prepared business plans to cope with the Asean Economic Community (AEC), and bancassurance is ...