Khmer Times

Cambodia’s ranking in the Index of Economic Freedom dropped by eight places from last year, a negative sign for a country seeking to expand its economy and become a major player in Southeast Asia. ...

A 60-megawatt solar station, supported by a $7.64 million loan from Asia Development Bank (ADB) is scheduled to be built later this year in Kampong Chhnang province, north of Phnom Penh. ...

According to a data graphic from the Ministry of Commerce released on Thursday, regular petrol went from 3,550 riel ($0.88) to 2,250 riel ($0.56) per litre, representing a 36.6 percent decrease.​ ...

The Cambodian government is close to signing a deal with the local subsidiary of French-owned, Singapore-based renewable power producer The Blue Circle to construct the energy-lacking country’s first wind power farm in Kampot. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday lifted an inter-provincial travel ban across the Kingdom to ease traffic jams after the Khmer New Year holidays came to an end. ...

PHNOM Penh City Hall is ready to quarantine more than 15,000 garment workers who are returning to the capital from their home provinces after Khmer New Year in an effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus. ...

An inter-ministerial statement was issued last week highlighting the achievements and further initiatives of the government’s cash subsidy programme for pregnant women, which seeks to promote maternal and child welfare and improve the wellbeing of children from impoverished families. ...

Cambodia’s Aviation sector is almost completely decimated due to extreme COVID-19 travel restrictions, with air passenger numbers dropping more than 90 percent as of April this year. ...

In a single deliberate poisoning event, three Giant Ibis, equivalent to 1-2 percent of the global population, have been killed – part of a disturbing global trend where conservationists are noticing increases in hunting of protected species since the spread of coronavirus began to disrupt ...

A grim report on the world economy by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday caused oil prices to continue to slide, with international prices hitting the lowest level since 2002 as planned output cuts were deemed insufficient to offset a COVID-19-fuelled slump in demand. ...

Cambodia’s exports through three Special Economic Zones in Svay Rieng province, which shares a border with Vietnam, have recorded a $237 million rise in the first quarter of 2020. ...

Cambodia’s Minister of Agriculture Veng Sakhon has told local media that his ministry plans to purchase $3.5 million’s worth of potato seeds, in a project partnering with South Korea to produce potatoes in the Mondulkiri province. ...

The COVID-19 pandemic is driving the airlines, hospitality, restaurants and related support industries to the brink. ...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has predicted Cambodia’s 2020 Gross Domestic Product will contract by -1.7 percent this year in line with a global contraction of -3.0 percent. The reduction in GDP represents an economic downturn the world has not seen since the Great Depression, ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen appealed for the continued efforts to eliminate malaria in the Kingdom despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The call was made in a statement issued yesterday ahead of the World Malaria Day on April 25. ...

Posts and Telecommunication Minister Chea Vandeth on Monday held a meeting to review research findings for two mobile applications and a ventilator, which could be used in the Kingdom’s response to the coronavirus. ...

Visa Inc. is one of several international digital payment firms who have said they are committed to supporting the government and the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) in their de-dollarisation mission. ...

Nine business associations in the STAR (Sustainable Textile of Asian Region) Network are calling on buyers to honour their contracts with their suppliers. ...

The price of fragrant rice exports to international markets has doubled in the last month, from $50 to $100 per matrix ton, according to the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF). ...

Three financial institutions and one privately owned company are expected to list their corporate bonds and equity on the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX) by the end of April and early May respectively. ...

Despite the reduction of electricity tariffs for factory workers suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Electricity Authority of Cambodia (EAC), the autonomous government agency responsible for managing and administering electric power in the country, has said that “a general plan for electricity bill reduction ...

The World Bank has warned that the significant growth recorded in the construction and real-estate sector, considered one of the country’s economic pillars, could ultimately affect overall growth due to a trinity of unanticipated and now negative factors. ...

The Labour Ministry said more than 90 percent of garment factory workers reported for work on the first day of Khmer New Year yesterday. ...

The Senate’s permanent committee today is handing over the draft law on “State of Emergency” to its expert commission for study before its upcoming plenary session. ...