Economy and commerce

Beer, whisky and strong, home-brewed moonshine have long been Cambodians’ favorite tipples, but with an ever-growing middle class, tastes are changing and if you’re part of the new elite, it is increasingly important to know your Pinot Gris from your Pinot Noir. To help enhance one’s ...

SBI Royal Securities, a subsidiary of Japanese-based SBI Holdings, has concluded a basic agreement to form a business and capital alliance with one of Thailand’s leading securities firms, in a move that could attract more investment from Cambodia’s northern neighbour. The agreement with Thailand’s Finansia Syrus ...

Saving deposits at microfinance institutions (MFIs) this month decreased slightly from the average monthly amount because of a rise in withdrawals, industry officials said. Bun Mony, president of the Cambodia Microfinance Association (CMA), and the general manager at MFI Sathapana Limited, said many people have come ...

Cambodian and Chinese top diplomats on Wednesday pledged to maintain and further heighten bilateral ties and cooperation for the mutual benefits of the two countries and peoples. The pledge came after a bilateral talk between Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong and visiting ...

Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding will cancel its joint-venture agreement with KK Power to build a 1.8-gigawatt coal-fired power plant in Koh Kong province of southwestern Cambodia. Pongdith Potchana, chief executive of Ratch, said yesterday that the company had revised the plan after its analysis indicated that ...

The fourth annual Business and Culture Expo hosted by the Cambodian American Business Association, an event designed to bring together business owners, entrepreneurs and Cambodian community members, will be held Sunday August 25 in the parking lot of the Mark Twain Library. However, the event that ...

As Cambodia’s busy tourism season approaches, domestic and regional airlines are scrambling to offer Siem Reap routes in a bid to capitalise on the growing number of visitors to the Angkor Wat gateway. In the past several months, players have entered the fray at a ...

When Him Anna started to plant pepper crops seven years ago, she would have never thought that one day it would turn into a profitable business. Today, Anna is the chief executive officer of Bright Starling Holdings Co, which owns Starling Farm Kampot Pepper. Established ...

Cambodia is one of the most attractive countries for expatriates working for US companies in ASEAN, according to a survey of 475 US business executives from throughout the region. Of those surveyed in Cambodia, 65 per cent reported that employees in other locations requested to relocate ...

Cambodia has seen a 32 percent rise in dry rubber exports in the first six months of the year, according to the figures of the Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday. Revenues from the exports valued at 76.5 million U.S. dollars during the first half of ...

In January, officials broke ground on the new $4 million headquarters for the Cambodia Securities Exchange. Situated along a northern stretch of Freedom Park, a short skip from Wat Phnom, the French colonial-era building is a suitable home for the two-year-old bourse, which now operates ...

Kuala Lumpur (The star /ANN) — A country once torn apart by war is emerging as a key investment destination for small and medium enterprises. It was once home to a great civilization. In the 12th century, the Khmer empire was South-East Asia’s largest. Angkor was ...

Phnom Penh municipal officials have ordered owners of eight sand-dredging companies that continued work despite a mandated moratorium to halt operations and show proof of their licences or shut down for good. On Saturday, the municipality informed the owners, whose names they declined to release, that ...

The Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) yesterday said a recent exodus of workers from factories in Phnom Penh to the provinces over concerns related to a recent military build up in the capital would not threaten stability in the sector. Ken Loo, secretary-general of GMAC, ...

About 1,000 workers at one of Asia’s largest garment-processing factories have joined more than 4,000 who began a strike last week, as union workers demanded the company meet nine conditions, including severing ties with a shareholder. Employees at the SL2 factory of SL Garment Processing (Cambodia) ...

The U.S. tax collection agency is this week training Cambodian bank staff as well as anti-corruption officials, police, judges and prosecutors in how to investigate financial activity to detect wrongdoing, officials said Monday. U.S. Embassy spokesman Sean McIntosh said the program, called Intermediate Financial Investigations Training, ...

Toyota Cambodia unveiled plans yesterday to add second-hand vehicles to its showroom in response to consumer preference for less expensive cars and a competitive grey market full of unauthorised dealers. Kong Nuon, chairman of Toyota Cambodia, the country’s largest car dealer, said that while demand for ...

After more than three months in jail, environmental activist Kuch Veng is set to hear his verdict at the Pursat provincial court. The verdict was originally scheduled to be handed down July 10, but the judge ordered it delayed after some 300 people from 11 provinces ...

The government of China on Monday delivered four units of container scanning machines to Cambodia for using at international border checkpoints. Speaking after the signing ceremony, Keat Chhon said the four container scanning machines, totally costing 13.8 million U.S. dollars, are China’s grant aid to ...

Malaysian information technology service provider Dataprep Holdings Bhd is considering establishing a presence in Cambodia, the Malaysian Reserve reported Monday. “We are currently looking at increasing our presence in Indochina, ASEAN and China,” chief executive Ahmad Rizan Ibrahim was quoted as telling reporters Friday. ...

Microsoft Cambodia has found that an overwhelming majority of computer retailers surveyed earlier this year failed to offer customers the option to purchase licensed, as opposed to pirated, software. Out of the 54 Cambodian computer retailers included in the May survey, the results of which were ...

Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital and largest city, has seen rapid development in the last decade — numerous high-rises, large shopping malls and business centres as well as public parks are beautifying this city — in the meantime, slum-dwellers are also on the rise. According to the ...

Sri Lankan agricultural group Lankem Ceylon PLC says it plans to plant 20,000 hectares of rubber in Cambodia as part of a diversification strategy. Lankem chairman A Rajaratnam disclosed the strategy in the company’s annual report for the year to March, 2012, released by the company ...

The private sector has called on the government to review Cambodia’s taxation law, a statute that business leaders say is outdated and needs to change if Cambodia wants to continue to attract foreign investment. Led by Cambodia Chamber of Commerce (CCC) president Kith Meng, a delegation ...