Cambodia's Trade with RCEP Countries Up 14 Percent in H1 2024

The country's trade volume with fellow RCEP members accounted for 64 percent of its 26.3-billion-dollar total trade volume during the January-June period this year, the report said.

The Southeast Asian nation exported products worth 4.52 billion dollars to the RCEP countries during the first half of this year, up 11 percent from 4.07 billion dollars over the same period in 2023, it said.

Meanwhile, the country recorded an import of goods worth 12.38 billion dollars from RCEP countries, up 15.3 percent from 10.73 billion dollars over the same period last year, it added.

Cambodia's top five trading partners under the regional mega-trade pact are China, Vietnam, Thailand, Japan, and Singapore, the report added.

Entered into force in 2022, the RCEP comprises 15 Asia-Pacific countries including 10 ASEAN member states -- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and their five trading partners, namely China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

Cambodian Ministry of Commerce's Secretary of State and Spokesperson Penn Sovicheat said the RCEP is a driving force for Cambodia's trade growth and a magnet to attract more foreign direct investments to the kingdom.

"Despite rising protectionism and weakening global demand, the RCEP has given a boost to regional trade cooperation, bringing tremendous benefits to all member countries," he told Xinhua.

"With preferential tariffs offered under the RCEP agreement, there's no doubt that our export to RCEP countries will continue to rise throughout the second half of this year and beyond," he added.

Sovicheat said the RCEP agreement and other bilateral free trade agreements will help Cambodia realize its ambitious goals of becoming an upper-middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income nation by 2050.

"I believe that the RCEP will help transform ASEAN into a new engine of growth for Asia," he said.

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