China and Cambodia signed a free trade agreement (FTA) in Phnom Penh on October 12, with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attending the signing ceremony.
A vendor carries fruit for sale in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia. (Photo: www.globaltimes.cn/)
Hanoi (VNA) - China and Cambodia signed a free tradeagreement (FTA) in Phnom Penh on October 12, with Cambodian Prime Minister HunSen and visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attendingthe signing ceremony.
TheFTA, Cambodia's first such bilateral deal, was completed after just threerounds of talks that started in January and finished in July. It was signedvirtually by Cambodia's Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak and his Chinesecounterpart Zhong Shan.
Covering a wide range of cooperation areas of investment, trade, tourism,transportation and agriculture, the deal is aimed at slashing tariffs and boosting marketaccess between the two countries.
“The signing of theagreement signifies even stronger ties between the two countries and marksanother key historical milestone for Cambodia China relations,” Pan Sorasaksaid at the signing ceremony.
He hoped the agreement, to come into effect early next year, would provide a more robust economic partnerships through a higher degreeof market access, liberalisation for goods, services and investment.
Currently,Cambodia's domestic demand is gradually recovering. In the October 2020 updatereport on the economic outlook for East Asia and the Pacific, announced onSeptember 29, the World Bank (WB) predicted that Cambodia's economy willdecline by 2 percent in 2020.
A report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) expected the Cambodian economy torecover with a 5.9 percent growth in 2021./.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to encourage Chinese investors to do business in Cambodia, contributing to the kingdom’s economic development.
Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hor Nam Hong said on July 23 that Cambodia and China will sign a free trade agreement before August 12 ahead of the European Union’s partial withdrawal of the Everything-but-Arms (EBA) trade status.
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Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira has outlined a six-point strategy to promote innovation, support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and push for Thailand's removal from the US Trade Representative (USTR)’s special 301 Watch List regarding intellectual property rights protection among trading partners.
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The consumer index of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC), fell to 51.7 in July from 52.7 in the previous month. The sluggish economy and the trade war, as well as high living costs, continue to undermine confidence, the university said.
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A vendor carries fruit for sale in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia. (Photo: www.globaltimes.cn/) 
