PHNOM PENH: Yesterday, Cambodia's Minister of Commerce, CHAM Nimul, met with the US ambassador to Cambodia Patrick Murphy to discuss ways to foster two-way trade and business activities between the two countries. The meeting also covered other areas of mutual interest, such as promoting trade and economic growth.

In the same day, Minister Nimul held a courtesy call with former Japanese ambassador to Cambodia Takahashi Fumiaki, who is now the President of the Japan-Cambodia Association. The two discussed ways to deepen bilateral relations and explore further cooperation activities to leverage the trade and investment opportunities between Cambodia and Japan.

The meetings between Minister Nimul and the US and Japanese officials are a positive step towards strengthening economic ties between Cambodia and its two key partners. The discussions highlighted the shared commitment to promoting investment and trade, and they set the stage for further cooperation in the years to come.

Last year Cambodia exported $12.2 billion worth of products to the United States market with a 40 percent increase compared to a year earlier, according to the US Census Bureau's latest report. In the same period Cambodia imported $450 million worth of products from the United States, an 8 percent increase year-on-year.

Bilateral trade between Cambodia and Japan reached $860 million in the first half of this year, an 8 percent decrease from $934 million compared to last year's same period.

Cambodia exported $545 million to Japan in the first six months of 2023, up a percent from the same period last year, while the total import from Japan was $315 million, a decrease of 20 percent from last year.

The main exports to Japan are garments, bags, footwear, furniture, cosmetics, paper and office supplies, and leather goods and the majority of imports are machinery, automobiles, electronics, furniture, fabrics, and plastics from Japan.

However, The total trade volume between Cambodia and its partners around the world topped nearly $32 billion in the first eight months of 2023, down 14.5 percent compared to the same period last year.