We expect the CEPA will contribute to delivering long-term sustainable economic growth, and believe it will enhance the global reach of Cambodian products to the Middle East region, says spokesman of the Commerce Ministry.
Even as Cambodia and United Arab Emirates (UAE) completed their final round of negotiations last week in Dubai and are expected to sign the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CAM-UAE CEPA) anytime this year, bilateral trade has been on the rise, said a senior official at the Ministry of Commerce (MoC).
Trade volume between the two countries achieved approximately $400 million last year, which is over 30 percent increase compared to 2021, said the official who received figures at the third and final round of negotiations from Juma Mohammed Al Kait, Assistant Undersecretary Foreign Trade Affairs of UAE.
Penn Sovicheat, MoC’s Under-Secretary of State, told Khmer Times yesterday that the total trade volume surged approximately 15.41 percent to $307 million in 2021 from $266 million in the previous year, which results in a surplus of about $83 million for Cambodia as the country exported its goods at $195 million and imported goods from UAE at $112 million.
Sovicheat, who is also the spokesman of the Commerce Ministry, pointed out that the data shared by the UAE counterpart shows that Cambodia received a surplus of $54.15 million in 2020 from the bilateral total trade volume as it exported its goods to UAE at $160 million and imported goods from the latter at $106 million.
“We expect that the CEPA will contribute to delivering long-term sustainable economic growth, and believe that it will enhance the global reach of Cambodian products to the Middle East region and the tourists as well as investors from the UAE who is currently an important logistics, tourist, financial and investment hub in the world,” said Sovicheat.
Socheat said Cambodia’s top exports from UAE in 2022 include apparel, shoes and other parts, bags, bicycles, husked rice, electronic and electronic parts, vehicle parts and wood products, while the country’s top imports from UAE include other petroleum fuels bitumen, cigarettes, lubricating oils, construction equipment, foodstuff, fertiliser, vehicle parts, electronic and electronic parts and telephones.
The final round was completed in Dubai capital city with fully finalised chapters and annexes on commodity trading, service trading, investment, electronic commerce, rules of commodity origins, trade facilitation, technical barriers of trading, hygiene, phytosanitary, intellectual property rights, trade remedy, economic cooperation, technical cooperation, small and medium enterprises, laws and institutions.
The CAM-UAE CEPA is expected to contribute to promoting relations and cooperation on a larger scale between the two countries, which would facilitate trade flow more smoothly and boost bilateral investment and connectivity of production chains, especially between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Middle East countries for stronger economic growth and inclusive, sustainable and resilient development, said the release.
The release by MoC also pointed out that both counterparts agreed to organise a ceremony to officially wrap up the draft agreement during the commerce mission of the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi to Cambodia in March 2023 in response to an invitation by MoC’s Minister Pan Sorasak.
The Secretary of State of MoC Tekreth Kamrang, who leads Cambodia’s negotiation team, and Juma Mohammed Al Kait, who leads UAE’s, signed a joint minute that affirms the final found of negotiation and agreed with each other to expedite finishing legal scrubbing before submission of CAM-UAE CEPA for signature in the short future, according to the release.
Seang Thai, secretary of state of MoC, told Khmer Times recently that the CEPA is more comprehensive than free trade agreements (FTAs), which means when CEPA exists, an FTA is not required. The second round of negotiations was proceeded in Phnom Penh in December last year after the first round was completed in Abu Dhabi City from October 24-26 last year.
Source: Khmer Times
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<p>Time: 2024 By: Ministry of Industry and Trade</p>
