PHNOM PENH: Cambodia exported US$13,525 million worth of goods to international markets in the January-July period of 2023, a year-on-year decrease of 2 percent, a report of the General Department of Customs and Excise showed on Friday.

Cambodia's top three export destinations were the U.S., Vietnam, and China, with shipments worth US$5,178 million, US$1,599 million, and US$814 million, respectively.

Main products Cambodia exported included apparel, footwear, travel goods, bicycles, and a number of agricultural goods such as rice, rubber, cassava, bananas, and mangoes.

The report stated that the Kingdom exported garment, footwear, and travel goods products worth in total of $6.36 billion during the said period, down 20.4 percent from US$7.99 billion in the same period last year.

The garment, footwear, and travel goods industry is the largest foreign exchange earner for Cambodia. The sector consists of roughly 1,300 factories and branches, employing about 840,000 workers, mostly female.

Ministry of Commerce's Secretary of State and Spokesperson H.E. Penn Sovicheat said that the Ukraine war caused a systematic shock to global economic growth, which has limited consumer spending around the world. This has led to declining orders in Cambodia.

“The country continues to receive purchase orders, which gives hope that exports will increase by the end of the year,” he said.

At the same time, the Kingdom's imports dropped by 25 percent to US$14,1745 million. AKP