Economic policy and administration

An official at the Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia (TRC) said Wednesday that the body plans to review and possibly lower the current minimum price per call after it recently ordered the country’s seven mobile phone operators to abide by a law that sets minimum call ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen and the visiting president of the China-Cambodia Friendship Association (CCFA) each planted a tree inside the Peace Palace compound in Phnom Penh on Wednesday to celebrate the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Gu Xiulian, president of the CCFA, ...

Cambodia’s General Department of Taxation had collected 800 million U.S. dollars of taxes in the first 11 months of the year, a 17 percent rise compared with the same period last year, a press release said Wednesday. The revenues came from tax on profit, withholding tax, ...

In an epic, six-hour address in September, Prime Minister Hun Sen apologized for the government’s many “problems” and promised a more reformist government over the next five years of his rule. Targeting corruption, deforestation and the lack of transparency across government sectors, the prime minister made ...

Cambodia is now ranked as being perceived by investors as Southeast Asia’s most corrupt country, surpassing Laos and Burma on Transparency International’s annual corruption index. Cambodia ranked 160 of 175 countries in the report, with its index score a mere 20 out of 100. That’s two ...

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said Wednesday that the country’s development in all fields could not be detached from China’s aid and vowed to further deepen ties between the two countries. According to the figures recorded by the Cambodian Finance Ministry, to date, China has ...

Mobile phone call promotions undercutting the government’s minimum pricing regulations are to be outlawed – again. Minimum charges will be applied to mobile phone calls from on Thursday with the return of the Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia’s (TRC) rules on call tariffs, the regulator confirmed yesterday. On ...

The privately-operated International Ship Registry of Cambodia (ISROC), a South Korea-based company that owns the rights to register foreign vessels under the Cambodian flag, told ship owners last year that it was not monitoring their observance of international maritime laws, and that it was their ...

Customs officers along Cambodia’s border have been instructed to increase their efforts to properly inspect and tax products coming into the country, which has increased the cost of imports and led to a rise in retail prices for a host of goods, government officials, businessmen ...

The UN urged government and financial organisations to stimulate Cambodia’s flailing micro-insurance industry yesterday, after a study found the country’s poor are vulnerable to indebtedness during a crisis. The United Nations Development Business (UNDB) hosted a working group yesterday at Phnom Penh’s Sunway Hotel launching the ...

The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, has reaffirmed an earlier prediction that Cambodia will grow 7 percent this year, in an interview published today by The Post newspaper. Lagarde praised the country’s economic outlook, although she acknowledged that it will face challenges, ...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde said Tuesday that Cambodia needs to invest more in education and physical infrastructure in order to lay the foundation for future success. While there has been good progress, Cambodia is still being held back by low ...

The wages of 400,000 civil servants from 39 government ministries are to be paid via a new electronic banking system due to be rolled out next month. Secretary of State for the Ministry of Economy and Finance Chu Kim Leng announced the new payroll system on ...

Cambodia has retained its B credit rating despite ratings company Standard & Poor’s citing the country’s ongoing political standoff as a “major” constraint. S&P affirmed Cambodia’s B/B credit rating last week, labeling the country as having a strong and stable long-term and short-term outlook. Engagement of international ...

The Motion Picture As­sociation of Cambodia (MPAC), an independent body that aims to protect intellectual property, officially opened its doors Wednesday, vowing to put an end to the sale of pirated DVDs in Phnom Penh as its first order of business. “We are goingto serve everybody ...

Low-quality education is jeopardizing business growth in Cambodia, and local graduates will not be employable in skilled jobs if the government does not quickly implement educational reforms, business executives warned Thursday at the Cambodian Market Intel 2013 seminar in Phnom Penh. During an hourlong panel discussion ...

With civil society, the opposition and even the ruling party talking more and more about the subject of electoral and judicial reforms in the wake of July’s contested national elections, some groups yesterday gathered to call for reforms in a more modest sector – parking ...

Following the announcement of recent reforms to Cambodia’s customs department and Commerce Ministry, a revision of the country’s investment law is planned for next year, according to the secretary-general of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC). Speaking to reporters at a workshop at the ...

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. ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...