PHNOM PENH: Cambodia exported $16.94 billion worth of goods in the first nine months of 2023, a slight drop of 0.8 percent from $17.07 billion in the same period last year, said a General Department of Customs and Excise's report released on Tuesday.

The main items Cambodia exported included garments, footwear, travel goods, bicycles, and a number of agricultural goods such as rice, rubber, cassava, bananas, mangos, and longans.

The kingdom's exports to China increased by 18.3 percent during the January-September period this year.

China is the third biggest export destination for the Southeast Asian country after the United States and Vietnam, the report showed.

Cambodian Ministry of Commerce's Secretary of State Penn Sovicheat said the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement and the Cambodia-China Free Trade Agreement had given a boost to the kingdom's export growth to China.

“These two trade pacts are catalysts for our long-term and sustainable export growth and they are also a magnet to attract more foreign direct investments to Cambodia,” he told Xinhua.