ASEAN member states invest 880 mln USD in Cambodia last year

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has attracted fixed asset investments of 880 million U.S. dollars from its ASEAN member states in 2011, according to a government report on Thursday.
Vietnam is the largest investor with the promised investment of 631 million U.S. dollars in 17 projects, following by Malaysia with 235 million U.S. dollars in six projects and Singapore 14 million U.S. dollars in one project, said the statistics of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).
It added that Vietnam's investment projects are in the fields of rubber plantation and processing and metal ore exploitation, Malaysia in the sectors of real estate, clothes manufacturing and rice milling, and Singapore in a five-star hotel development.
The report recorded that from 1994 to 2011, the ASEAN countries investing in Cambodia have only been Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore.
During the past 17 years, Malaysia's accumulative investments in Cambodia have amounted to 2.61 billion U.S. dollars; Vietnam 1. 2 billion U.S. dollars; Thailand 746 million U.S. dollars; and Singapore 649 million U.S. dollars.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Cambodia’s FM heads to China to boost bilateral, ASEAN-China ties

     PHNOM PENH, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia’s Deputy Prime Minister and minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation Hor Namhong left Cambodia on Sunday morning for a 3-day visit in China.

   The visit aimed at cementing Cambodia-China ties and ASEAN-China relations, said a press release of the ministry of foreign affairs.

   At the Phnom Penh International Airport, the minister was seen off by Chinese ambassador to Cambodia Pan Guangxue and other senior officials at the ministry.   

   “Cambodia and China have had very close and special relations and cooperation since the past to the present. The visit is to deepen the friendship relations,” Hor Namhong told reporters before his departure.

   During the stay in China, he said that he will hold talks with Chinese foreign minister Yang Jiechi on bilateral, regional and international issues; then, he will pay courtesy calls on China’s top leaders.

   In addition, the minister will deliver a speech on the ASEAN-China relations at the ASEAN-China Center and visit a Cultural Center.

   Cambodia is the chair of ASEAN in 2012. With the chairmanship, the country pledged to strengthen closer ties and cooperation between ASEAN and China.

   The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. 

Cambodian FM to visit China to boost ties

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, who is also a minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, will lead a delegation to visit China on Feb. 5-7 in order to strengthen bilateral ties and ASEAN- China relations, according to the ministry's press release on Thursday.
The visit is made at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.
During the visit, Hor Namhong will hold talks with Yang Jiechi on some bilateral and international issues, said the press release.
The minister will deliver a speech on the ASEAN-China relations at the ASEAN-China Center. He will also meet with some other Chinese high-ranking officials.
Cambodia is the chair of ASEAN in 2012. With the chairmanship, the country pledged to strengthen closer ties and cooperation between ASEAN and China.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Cambodia’s micro-lenders report 49% loan growth in 2011

 PHNOM PENH, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia’s Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) on Thursday reported 49 percent growth of  loan disbursements last year, according to the report of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC).
  The kingdom’s 31 micro-lenders had lent 652 million U.S. dollars as of December last year, a 49 percent rise from 437.6 million  U.S. dollars at the end of 2010, said the report.
  The figures also showed that the number of borrowers had increased by 15 percent to 1.17 million from 1.02 million.
  Cambodia sees microfinance as a key sector for poverty reduction in rural Cambodia and the sector has been well developed in  recent years, Pal Buy Bonnang, director general of the NBC’s banking supervision department, said Thursday.
  Generally, the maximum size of a loan the MFI lends is 10,000 U.S. dollars.

Cambodia’s banks see sharp rise in loan demands last year: central bank report

 PHNOM PENH, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Loan demands from Cambodia’s banking industry had sharply increased in the past year  thanks to increasing business activities, according to the report of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) on Thursday.
  The kingdom’s 30 commercial banks had lent a total of 4.32 billion U.S. dollars by the end of 2011, an increase of 32 percent  from 3.28 billion U.S. dollars at the end of 2010, showed the report.
  Nguon Sokha, the NBC’s director general, attributed the well growth in lending to better economic situation.
  “In general, the banking sector was quite stable and healthy last year,” she told Xinhua by telephone. “Most of the loans go to  the sectors of trades, agriculture and tourism.”
  She forecast that the country’s banking sector would grow another 30 percent this year in terms of lending.
  According to the report, on the deposit side, the customers’ deposits at the commercial banks had increased by 20.5 percent to  4.7 billion U.S. dollars by the end of last year from 3.9 billion U.S. dollars in a year earlier.

Cambodia’s inflation rate holds 5.5 pct in 2011

 PHNOM PENH, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia’s inflation rate stood at 5.5 percent last year, an increase of 1.5 percent from 4  percent in a year earlier, according to the report of the Finance Ministry on Thursday.
  The rate was the same one forecasted by the Asian Development Bank, but lowered than the forecast by the International  Monetary Fund and the World Bank at 5.7 percent and 7.5 percent respectively.
  Soaring oil prices mainly drove up the inflation rate last year. A liter of premium gasoline goes for 1.4 U.S. dollars on Thursday,  up 12 percent compared with this time last year.
  The ministry predicted that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation rate in 2012 and 2013 would be at 5 percent and 3  percent respectively.
  The report also recorded that the Cambodian ‘Riel’ currency value remained stable last year compared to the U.S. dollar—at  4,040 riel against a U.S. dollars.

China-funded road inaugurated in Cambodia's northeastern provinces

MONDOLKIRI, Cambodia, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia on Tuesday inaugurated a 127-kilometer China-funded road here, aiming at developing eco-tourism in Cambodia's far northeastern provinces.
The inaugurated national road No. 76 stretches from Kratie province's Snuol district to Mondolkiri province's Sen Monorom city.
The inauguration was presided over by Prime Minister Hun Sen and Pan Guangxue, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia, and was also attended by top government officials, diplomatic corps, some 6,000 local people.
Speaking at the inauguration, Hun Sen said the construction of the road was begun in February 2007 by the China Road and Bridge Corporation as a cost of about 52 million U.S. dollars under the soft loan from the Chinese government.
"The road not only contributes to the development of Cambodia' s eco-tourism provinces, it also helps develop the triangle development area with Vietnam and Laos," he said.
"On behalf of the government of Cambodia and Cambodian people, I'd like to express sincere thanks to the government of China and its people for providing both grants and loans to Cambodia for social and economic development", said the premier.
"Today's achievements come from the close and sincere cooperation between Cambodia and China,"he said.
Pan Guangxue said that the road inauguration was a new symbol of good cooperation between China and Cambodia. "We believe that the road will help boost economic development and poverty reduction in Cambodia's eastern provinces,"he said. "China will still continue supporting Cambodia in infrastructure development projects."
The ambassador said that since 1992, the government of China has provided a total of 1.7 billion U.S. dollars in soft loans to Cambodia.
With the loans, more than 1,500 kilometers of roads in Cambodia have been constructed.
Meanwhile, the premier and the ambassador also broke ground for the construction of an extended national road No. 76 in the length of 172 kilometers from Sen Monorom city to Rattanakiri province under China's soft loan of 91.7 million U.S. dollars.
It will take 42 months to complete.
The hilly province of Mondolkiri is located some 386 kilometers northeast of Cambodia.