PHNOM PENH: An official report released early this week, Cambodia’s foreign trade volume reached $41 billion in the first nine months of 2022, up 18 percent from $34.76 billion in the same period last year.

According to the General Department of Customs and Excise, the kingdom’s total exports were worth 17.25 billion dollars during the January-September period this year, up 22.1 percent year on year, and total imports were worth 23.76 billion dollars, up 15.2 percent.

Undersecretary of State of the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce Penn Sovicheat attributed the growth to the full resumption of socioeconomic activities in Cambodia, free trade agreements, and an increase in global demand.

“There is no doubt that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade agreement and the Cambodia-China Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA), both of which entered into force earlier this year, have significantly boosted our trade growth,” he told Xinhua.

“We are confident with the two free trade agreements, our exports to the international markets, particularly to China and other RCEP member countries will increase, potentially agricultural products such as rice, bananas, mangoes, industrial products, and processing goods,” Sovicheat said.

Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam are all part of the RCEP, as are China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.