Experts Question New Trade Goal with Vietnam
Officials and experts yesterday questioned the likelihood of Cambodia and Vietnam’s proposal to hike bilateral trade by more than US$2.5 billion by 2015. The pledge of $5 billion in total trade, made by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Tan Dung, last week, reflected a similar Sino-Cambodian trade goal made at the beginning of April. Last week’s announcement, however, would be from a lower trade base and within a shorter period of time. ... The figure proposed in Vietnam last week would be difficult to reach without an increase in competitiveness on the Vietnamese side, Cambodian Economic Association president Chan Sophal said yesterday. ... Cambodia’s main exports to Vietnam were seafood, corn, dried tobacco and other agricultural goods. Vietnam exported iron, steel, garments and plastic materials to the Kingdom.
