LED lights’ lure of lower electricity bills
January 24th, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Electricity, Energy, Foreign Investment, News Source
The locally based Global Media Group is bringing the latest LED lighting technology to the Cambodian market in an effort to reduce people’s electricity bills.
GMG assistant chief executive Bun Sim said the company would use all its know-how, as well as experts from South Korea, to introduce the technology to Cambodia. …
“LED is completely different from normal lighting because it helps reduce electricity consumption.”
GMG chief executive Yoo Rina predicted in a press release that LED technology would soon replace conventional lighting and the value of the global LED market would grow to $100 billion. …
May Kunmakara
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012460969/Business/led-lights-lure-of-lower-electricity-bills.html
Cambodian producers struggle to compete with foreign goods
January 24th, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Economics, Foreign Investment, News Source
More creative thinking is needed to restore trust in Cambodian products, but intense competition from foreign investment has the potential to stifle local innovation, industry experts say.
A survey of more than 600 Cambodian consumers undertaken by Thai Market Research Company Envirosell found that Cambodian consumers prefer Western products to those made in neighbouring Laos and Myanmar.
Laurent Notin, general manager of Indochina Research, said the survey was not a revelation. “I am not surprised that they say Cambodians prefer Western products, as Western products come with high perceptions of quality,” he said. …
Daniel de Carteret
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012460960/Business/cambodian-producers-struggle-to-compete-with-foreign-goods.html
Cambodia attracts 2.05 bln USD investment projects in 11 months last year
January 24th, 2013, Asean - China Centre, Agriculture & Agri-business, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Economics, Foreign Investment, Garment Industry, Industry, News Source, Rice, Tourism
Cambodia had issued licenses to 146 domestic and foreign investment projects with the total investment of 2.05 billion U.S. dollars in the first eleven months last year, showed a report of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) released Tuesday. …
During the period, the country received 36 Chinese projects with an investment of 249 million U.S. dollars; four Japanese projects with 211-million-dollar investment; and 26 projects from South Korea worth 159 million dollars. …
ASEAN - China Centre
http://www.asean-china-center.org/english/2013-01/23/c_132123007.htm
$20m mill will lift rice exports
January 24th, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Agriculture & Agri-business, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Exports, Foreign Investment, News Source, Rice, Trade
Cambodian company Soma Group has signed a joint-venture agreement with Thai-based CP Intertrade to build and operate a $20 million rice mill that will process fragrant rice for export.
Industry insiders say the mill will increase Cambodia’s rice export capacity and boost the Kingdom’s ability to produce quality rice for the international market.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by Soma Group chief executive Sok Puthyvuth, the son of Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, and Sumeth Laomoranphorn, a representative of CP Intertrade, an agricultural distrib-ution company in Bangkok. …
Hor Kimsay
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013012460970/Business/20m-mill-will-lift-rice-exports.html
Government to invest $4.4B in Public Sector
January 21st, 2013, The Cambodia Daily, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Economics, Infrastructure, Technical Assistance
The government has approved more than $4 billion of investment in the public sector over the next three years in a bid to stimulate economic growth, the council of ministers said in a statement obtained yesterday. …
“The rolling plan will focus om four main sectors” … 40 percent would go toward infrastructure, 37 percent would go directly into stimulating the economy, 16 percent would go toward social spending and 7 percent across all other sectors. …
Neou Vannarin, P.18
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/
Cambodian miner Khmer Resources plans to tap Hong Kong capital market
January 18th, 2013, South China Morning Post, Business & Commercial Development, Construction, Domestic Investment, Economics, Extractive Industries, Foreign Investment, Industry, Infrastructure, International Relations, Mining
Khmer Resources Investment, which is backed by the Cambodian government, aims to list in Hong Kong within two years, chairman Cao Yunde said.
“We intend to leverage the capital market of Hong Kong to finance our growth through a public listing so as to maximise the benefits for Cambodia and its people,” said Cao at the opening of Khmer Resources’ Hong Kong office yesterday.
“The mission of Khmer Resources and Khmer Hong Kong is to boost the social and economic development of Cambodia, transform Cambodia’s comparative advantage in natural resources into economic benefits, and adopt the capital market approach to the mining industries.” …
Khmer Resources’ shareholders included Chinese state-owned enterprises, listed and private Chinese companies and Australian firms, said Cao without revealing details. …
In Cambodia, Khmer Resources has a 280 square kilometre coal mine, a 120 sqkm nickel and cobalt mine, a 288 sqkm rare-earth mine, a 218 sqkm rare-earth mine, a 198 sqkm copper and gold mine, a 198 sqkm rare-earth mine and an 80 sqkm copper and gold mine. …
Toh Han Shih
http://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/1130588/cambodian-miner-khmer-resources-plans-tap-hong-kong-capital
DVD Shops Raided by Police At Local Distributor’s Request
January 17th, 2013, The Cambodia Daily, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Foreign Investment, News Source
Police in Phnom Penh yesterday raided nine DVD shops at Tuol Tom Poung market in Chamkar Mon district, confiscating hundreds of illegally reproduced movies at the joint request of the Ministry of Culture and local movie distributor Westec Media Limited. …
Sao Bunthoeurn, deputy director of the national police’s internal security department, said police confiscated a total of 506 DVDs and fined the vendors. …
DVD vendors at Tuol Tom Poung said yesterday that police fined them between $250 and $500. And while some were asked to thumbprint police reports, none were given documentation of the penalties they paid.
Ben Woods and Chin Chan, P.19
http://cambodiadaily.com/
Acleda readies to open Myanmar’s first micro-finance firm
January 17th, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Banking & Finance, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Financial Services, Foreign Investment, News Source
Cambodia’s largest bank is ready to launch its first micro-finance institution (MFI) in Myanmar, but one final barrier remains: an operating licence from Myanmar’s government.
Acleda Bank’s chief executive, In Channy, expects the licence to be granted by the end of this month.
Once that is done, Acleda MFI Myanmar, located in Yangon, will begin disbursing loans to individuals and groups by early February. …
Low Wei Xiang
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013011760823/Business/acleda-readies-to-open-myanmar-s-first-micro-finance-firm.html
iPhone struggles for a place in Cambodian market
January 15th, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Economics, Foreign Investment, Industry, International Relations, Production, Telecommunications, Trade
It will not be enough for Apple to simply offer a cheaper iPhone for the company to gain share in the competitive Cambodian smartphone market, according to industry insiders.
They say Apple’s operating system, iOS, may also restrict their potential growth.
Bloomberg last week reported that Apple was planning a smaller, more cost-effective iPhone to compete with brands offering cheaper alternatives in Asian markets. …
Hor Hap, deputy managing director of G-Gear, an LG Mobile authorized distributor in Cambodia, said it was not just a matter of bringing out a cheaper phone to compete. …
“LG is very popular, and it is the only smartphone that offers the official Khmer language, Unicode,” he said.
Recognizing the growth in demand, Nokia, too, will introduce a smartphone powered by the Windows Phone 8 operating system to the Cambodian market this year. …
Daniel de Carteret
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013011560781/Business/iphone-struggles-for-a-place-in-cambodian-market.html
Businesses Told to Close for 8 Days for King Father’s Funeral
January 15th, 2013, The Cambodia Daily, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, News Source, Trade
Business owners in Phnom Penh’s Daun Penh district yesterday said they will not follow a government directive to close their businesses for eight days in observance of the second mourning period for the late King Father Norodom Sihanouk.
The order, which was distributed on Sunday to shops and restaurants in Chey Chumneah commune on Sothearos Boulevard and street 13, 178 and 184, said that businesses would be required to close from January 31 to February 7. The late King Father’s funeral procession will take place on February 1 and his cremation on February 4. …
Kaing Menghun and Colin Meyn, P.18
www.cambodiadaily.org
Angkor Car Reintroduced Without Defects
January 9th, 2013, The Cambodia Daily, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Foreign Investment, Industry, International Relations, Production, Trade
After delaying mass production of the Angkor Car because of technical difficulties with starting the engine and opening the doors, Heng Development Co. Ltd. on Monday unveiled a new model and said it had severed ties with the Hong Kong-based firm responsible for the original car’s defects. …
“We had signed an agreement with Chau Leong Enterprise Group to provide the electrical appliances for the Angkor Car, and he told me he had a factory in Hong Kong that produces cars. But when I went to Hong Kong to visit his company…I was disappointed, he had no factory,” said Seang Changheng, chairwoman of Heng Development, at a showroom on Monivong Boulevard where the new car was unveiled.
Nhean Phaloek, the Angkor Car’s founding designer, said Heng Development is looking to invest with a Japanese company, though he declined to reveal which company his firm was targeting.
Phok Dorn
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/business/angkor-car-reintroduced-without-defects-7536/
Cambodia unveils 1st home-made cars
January 7th, 2013, Xinhuanet News, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, News Source
Cambodia’s Heng Development Company on Monday unveiled the first-ever electric-powered cars manufactured by its factory in Kandal province.
The show was made after the firm has completed the construction of a 20 million U.S. dollar car manufacturing plant branded ” Angkor” in Kandal province’s Takhmao district.
Speaking at a car show on Monday here, Khuon Sodary, the 2nd vice-president of the Parliament, said it was the first time that Cambodia has its own car-made factory and this was a pride for the country. …
Xinhuanet
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-01/07/c_132085823.htm
Fixed-line internet providers see growth
January 7th, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, News Source
Despite the spread of web-enabled smartphones and tablets in Cambodia, internet service providers expected the number of fixed-line applications to grow, two industry insiders said yesterday.
“With the advent of tablets and faster smartphones, it’s inevitable that people will use their devices more and more for the internet,” Paul Blanche-Horgan, the CEO of ISP EZECOM, said. …
Anne Renzenbrink and Sarah Thust
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013010760646/Business/fixed-line-internet-providers-see-growth.html
Cambodia’s national carrier adds new aircraft, targeting Singapore, China
January 6th, 2013, Xinhuanet News, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Foreign Investment, News Source, Trade
The national flag carrier, Cambodia Angkor Air (CAA), added a new passenger plane on Sunday in order to expand new flight destinations to countries in the region, said a senior government official.
“The new Airbus 321 plane is leased from an Airbus manufacturer in France,” Tek Rethsamrach, secretary of state at the Council of Ministers and CAA’s president, told reporters at a new plane welcoming ceremony at the Phnom Penh International Airport on Sunday. …
Xinhuanet
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-01/06/c_132083762.htm
Cedac buys rice miller to boost imports
January 4th, 2013, The Cambodia Daily, Agriculture & Agri-business, Agro-Industry, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Exports, News Source, Rice, Trade
The Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture, or Cedac, has built a
$500,000 rice mill in Phnom Penh’s Pur Senchey district in the hope of exporting
more milled rice overseas, an official said yesterday.
“We expect that in 2013, we would export between 200 tons and 300 tons of milled rice to the U.S., because now we have our own rice mill,” Yang Saing Koma, President of Cedac said, adding that the NGO exported more than 100 tons of milled rice to the U.S. last year without a rice mill. …
Phok Dorn, P.21
www.cambodiadaily.com
Cambodia’s Economic Challenge
January 3rd, 2013, The Diplomat, Business & Commercial Development, Construction, Disputed Land, Domestic Investment, Economics, Exports, Foreign Investment, Garment Industry, Industry, Infrastructure, Labor, Land Tenure, News Source, Tourism, Trade
Even as the skyline of Phnom Penh grows with the symbols of modern architecture, Cambodia’s economy still faces a host of challenges. …
On the surface, Cambodia’s economy is certainly improving. In September, the IMF raised its 2012 GDP growth forecast from 6.3 to 6.5 percent and, in Asia, only China and Laos are tipped to grow faster in 2013. The World Bank’s December forecast predicts Cambodia will experience an average annual GDP growth rate of 7 percent over the next five years.
But the positive statistics obscure the potentially debilitating structural issues: namely, the economy is susceptible to external shock.
The World Bank forecasts a 0.5-percentage point fall in GDP growth for 2012 versus the previous year mainly due to an anticipated drop in garment and agricultural shipments, which together account for 90 percent of Cambodia’s total export earnings. …
Steve Finch
http://thediplomat.com/2013/01/03/cambodias-failed-trickle-down-economy/
Ly Hour Group starts second project
January 3rd, 2013, The Cambodia Daily, Business & Commercial Development, Construction, Domestic Investment, Infrastructure, Land Tenure, News Source, Real Estate
Housing development company the Ly Hour Group said it has begun work on its second major project, called Vimean Phnom Penh The Commercial Zone, after its first project Vimean Phnom Penh was successfully completed.
The company said the amount of traffic along Phnom Penh’s Chea Sophara road is a vital factor in upgrading housing development in the area, and it decided to begin building its second project on December 12, 2012. …
Seun Son
www.phnompenhpost.com/2013010360593/Real-Estate/ly-hour-group-starts-second-project.html
Coffee production in Mondulkiri province increases
January 2nd, 2013, The Phnom Penh Post, Agriculture & Agri-business, Agro-Industry, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Farming, News Source, Trade
Coffee production in Mondulkiri province in 2012 will be higher than in 2011, according to farmers and producers.
Coffee farmer Bou Sopheap told the Post that he just finished the harvest in December.
In 2012, his two-hectare plantation provided about four tonnes of coffee beans, compared to 2011’s three tonnes. …
City Orders Removal of a Dozen Newspaper Stands
January 1st, 2013, VOA, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Economics, News Source
Phnom Penh authorities have ordered 12 newspaper kiosks to leave a major road in the capital, saying they need them to relocate for 12 months for construction but giving them no other place to go.
Owners of the kiosks, which are popular in the sale of papers around the capital, said the order would mean the end of their business, and journalism advocates say the closure will mean less access to information. …
Kong Sothanarith
http://www.voacambodia.com/content/city-orders-removal-of-a-dozen-newspaper-stands/1575403.html
Cambodia defies global crisis
December 28th, 2012, The Phnom Penh Post, Business & Commercial Development, Domestic Investment, Economics, Exports, Foreign Investment, Garment Industry, Imports, Industry, News Source, Textiles, Tourism, Trade
Cambodia’s economic performance this year has been heartening despite the global economic slowdown, especially the chaos caused in Europe by the sovereign-debt crisis and the sluggish recovery of the US economy.
In October, the International Monetary Fund revised its world growth projections to 3.3 per cent and 3.6 per cent in 2012 and 2013 respectively, lower than the its estimates in July. …
May Kunmakara, P.8
www.phnompenhpost.com