PHNOM PENH: Cambodia exported products worth $15.7 billion in the first eight months of 2023, a slight increase of 0.3 percent from $15.64 billion in the same period last year, said a General Department of Customs and Excise's report released on Friday.

The report said the kingdom's export to China surged by 16.8 percent to $940 million during the January-August period this year from $804.6 million in the same period last year.

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

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

Commenting on a significant rise in exports to China, Cambodian Ministry of Commerce's Secretary of State Penn Sovicheat said the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement and the Cambodia-China Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) had injected a vigorous impetus into the country's trade growth.

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