The Ministry of Commerce of Cambodia recently released news that in 2022, the trade volume between Cambodia and other members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) will reach US$31 billion, a year-on-year increase of 4%.
The report pointed out that in 2022, Cambodia's exports to other RCEP member countries will be US$6.34 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7%; imports from other RCEP member countries will reach US$24.68 billion, a year-on-year increase of 3%. China remains Cambodia's largest trading partner, with a trade volume between Cambodia and China of US$14.5 billion in 2022.
According to data previously released by the Cambodian government, the total foreign trade volume of Cambodia in 2022 will be US$52.4 billion, a year-on-year increase of 9%. Among them, Cambodia's total exports were US$22.482 billion, a year-on-year increase of 16%; total imports were US$29.941 billion, a year-on-year increase of 4.3%. The trade volume between Cambodia and RCEP members accounts for nearly 60% of its overall trade volume.
The RCEP agreement will come into effect on January 1, 2022. RCEP member countries account for about 30% of the world in terms of population, economic aggregate, and total trade volume. Since the implementation of the RCEP agreement, Cambodia's exports have grown significantly.
The World Bank’s previous report pointed out that Cambodia will become one of the most beneficiary countries when RCEP comes into effect, which will effectively promote Cambodia’s foreign trade and attract foreign investment. The report pointed out that the tariff reduction and exemption stipulated by RCEP and the simplification of rules of origin will help countries in the region improve productivity, vigorously promote trade and investment in the RCEP region, and create a more stable trade and investment environment. The report also pointed out that Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand are expected to achieve higher real income growth over the next 10 years due to the relatively higher proportion of manufacturing in their GDP.
