Economy and commerce
Investment
Thai border SEZs set for discussion next month
In an effort to boost trade activity between Thailand and Cambodia, both countries will discuss plans for two special economic zones along the Thai-Cambodian border next month, according to the secretary of state at the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday. “It will provide us ...
Hor Kimsay and Anne Renzenbrink
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052965902/Business/thai-border-sezs-set-for-discussion-next-month.html
Geopacific extends its copper zone
Geopacific Resources, an Australian mineral exploration company, said it has extended the zone of copper found in Preah Vihear province’s Kou Sa district to 18 kilometres, the company announced yesterday. ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052965899/Business/geopacific-extends-its-copper-zone.html
Spending in NagaCorp casino drops
Spending in NagaCorp’s casino has dropped by about 4.4 per cent in the first quarter of the year compared with the same period last year. Some $1.17 billion was gambled in the casino from January to March this year, said a company quarterly report released last ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052865866/Business/spending-in-nagacorp-casino-drops.html
Samsung pushes for 30 stores in Kingdom
Samsung plans to more than quadruple its number of stores – currently seven – in the Kingdom, aiming to have 30 branches by the end of this year. The move will extend its lead as the electronic brand with the most stores here, and comes as ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052865864/Business/samsung-pushes-for-30-stores-in-kingdom.html
Vietnam invests in largest sugar project in Cambodia
The largest complex of sugarcane, ethanol and thermal power plants in Cambodia was inaugurated in Okrieng commune, Sombour district, Kratie province on May 26. Addressing the ceremony, Cambodia’s Deputy Prime Minister Yim Chay Ly emphasized that the complex inauguration in Kratie was the outcome of the ...
Insurance premiums on the rise
The Kingdom’s total insurance premiums rose sharply in the first quarter of the year, compared with the same period the previous year, thanks largely to the growth of the economy and an influx of foreign direct investment, industry insiders said. Official data from the General Insurance ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052765846/Business/insurance-premiums-on-the-rise.html
Local banks gain trust: survey
Nearly nine out of 10 Cambodians have confidence in local financial institutions, a trend that stands in sharp contrast to Europe and the US, a poll published last week found. However, industry insiders question the results, as the Kingdom’s financial services are still under-developed. The poll ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052765847/Business/local-banks-gain-trust-survey.html
Regional pharma producers eye Kingdom
International pharmaceutical companies are increasingly looking to sell their products to Cambodia, although the market is full of obstacles, according to experts. After several big international players announced sales expansion plans, two companies from Indonesia, a major manufacturing hub in Southeast Asia, are planning to follow. Kalbe ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052465819/Business/regional-pharma-producers-eye-kingdom.html
ACLEDA capitalises for growth
ACLEDA Bank, the largest locally owned commercial bank in Cambodia, said it has raised its current registered capital by $72.5 million, to $185.6 million, for business expansion domestically and internationally. It is the tenth time the bank has done so. ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052365788/Business/acleda-capitalises-for-growth.html
AEON widens HP to farmers
AEON Microfinance (Cambodia) Co Ltd says it has expanded its installment payment services into the agricultural sector, a new business type industry insiders say could be successful, but will still not be enough to strengthen one of Cambodia’s most crucial economic sectors. “We will co-operate with ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052365789/Business/aeon-widens-hp-to-farmers.html
Rice exports to region rising
Cambodian milled rice exports are gradually lessening their dependency on a single market by expanding their shipping destination in Asia, a sign insiders say is good news for the industry. Kim Savuth, president of the Federation of Cambodian Rice Exporters, told the Post yesterday that milled ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052365791/Business/rice-exports-to-region-rising.html
Officials in ‘contract’ farms drive
Officials are seeking expert firms to implement projects on so-called contract farming and the enhancement of the involvement of farmers’ organisations in paddy collecting and processing, officials said. Contract farming is an agreement on agricultural production carried out between a farmer and buyers, which establishes conditions ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052265766/Business/officials-in-contract-farms-drive.html
Solar panels see sunny times ahead
Officials and business people say solar panels are gaining in popularity in rural areas, where the power grid does not reach. Mao Sangat, director of Solar Energy Cambodia, told the Post yesterday that his company saw increases of installation of solar power systems for families whose ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052165730/Business/solar-panels-see-sunny-times-ahead.html
Packaged MSG imports plummet
Cambodian imports of packaged monosodium glutamate (MSG) totalled just 2,086 tonnes last year, the lowest amount since 2002, according to import figures from the customs department of the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The import figures showed that from 2002 to 2010, Cambodia had imported a ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052165729/Business/packaged-msg-imports-plummet.html
Accident rocks garment industry again
For the second time in five days, Cambodia’s garment industry has been rocked by another partial collapse of a structure at a factory. Garment workers are reporting that at least 10 people, including a pregnant woman, have been injured after a concrete platform collapsed into a ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052065721/National/accident-rocks-garment-industry-again.html
Investments in Cambodia Up
Vietnam’s investment in Cambodia has increased significantly in the last three years, but a mechanism to encourage and oversee investments in prioritized sectors is needed, according to diplomatic sources. Tan Nguyen Tien, head of the economic section at the Vietnamese embassy in Phnom Penh, said Vietnam’s ...
http://www.thecambodiaherald.com/cambodia/detail/1?page=13&token=NjA1NjRhYTIxOTd
Thai generator looking at Kingdom
Thailand-based Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Pcl (RATCH) has “seriously assessed” investment possibility in neighbouring countries including Cambodia, a company statement said last Thursday. It said it had geared up for business expansion in domestic and international markets in the potential existing investment bases Laos and Australia, ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052065705/Business/thai-generator-looking-at-kingdom.html
Kampot pepper yield down
This year’s weather has proven too hot for the Kingdom’s famous Kampot pepper, as yields of the spice dropped for the first time since 2008. Some 22 tonnes of pepper were harvested this year between January and May, short of the 27 tonnes predicted for this ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013052065706/Business/kampot-pepper-yield-down.html
Ethnic villagers, firm battle over Ratanakkiri plot
A local official and four ethnic minority Tompuon villagers appeared in a Ratanakkiri court on Friday to face accusations of land-grabbing and protesting against a private company that purchased their land in 2007, authorities said yesterday. Rocham Pheun, an assistant to the chief of Keh Chung ...
Instalment payments for goods gaining purchase
AEON Microfinance (Cambodia) Co, part of Japan-based AEON Group, said sales by instalment for electrical appliances and motorbikes increased by 715 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 year on year, a trend industry experts say will grow further with increasing demand for electronics. Started ...
MIME launches business award
The government wants to play a bigger role in helping local businesses remain competitive and, to this end, the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy (MIME) has launched a new award to recognise companies that have achieved high produc-tivity standards. Ten companies will be awarded in ...
http://phnompenhpost.com/2013051765677/Business/mime-launches-business-award.html
Charges in Ratanakkiri arson
The Ratanakkiri Provincial Court yesterday charged two staffers of Vietnamese rubber concessionaire Hoang Anh Ratanakkiri (CRD) with causing intentional damage for allegedly setting fire to several homes belonging to a landowner with whom they were embroiled in a land dispute, deputy prosecutor Mom Vanda said. ...
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013051665652/National/charges-in-ratanakkiri-arson.html
Cambodian PM inaugurates rubber processing plant in far northern province
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday inaugurated a rubber processing plant here, saying the factory would contribute to developing the country’s fast-growing rubber sector. The 7 million U.S. dollar plant, invested by Cambodia’s Sopheak Nika Investment Agro-Industry Company, was built on the area of 9 ...
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-05/15/c_132384351.htm
Cambodia-Japan trade volume up 14% in 3 months
Bilateral trade volume between Cambodia and Japan had amounted to 180 million U.S. dollars in the first three months of this year, up 14 percent compared with the 158 million U.S. dollars at the same period last year, a report of the Japan External Trade ...
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/business/2013-05/14/c_132381154.htm