Cambodia imported a total of $456.673 million worth of “rot’yon” -class automotive motor vehicles in the first half of 2023, down 19.90 per cent year-on-year from $570.099 million, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
Local pundits have attributed this decline to marked gains in Cambodia’s overall vehicle assembly capacity observed in recent years.
The “rot’yon” category includes cars, SUVs, vans, trucks, buses, lorries and similar motor vehicles meant for passenger or freight transport, but excludes motorcycles, auto-rickshaws and generally vehicles used for other specialised functions.
A commerce ministry bulletin citing data from the General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia (GDCE), which was obtained by The Post at the weekend, divides these imports into four subcategories: family-oriented, 10 or more passengers, freight, and other.
Of note, the English names provided for these subcategories were, in the same order, “tour bus”, “motor vehicles (for 10 or more persons)”, “motor vehicles (for goods)”, and “other vehicles”, which may be a bit misleading, especially the first.
Family-oriented units made up 70.06 per cent of the first-half total, clocking in at $319.943 million, down 11.76 per cent year-on-year from $362.564 million, followed by freight ($108.737M; down 39.54%; $179.840M), 10 or more passengers ($20.756M; up 15.70%; $17.939M) and other ($7.237M; down 25.81%; $9.755M), the bulletin shows.
By comparison, the GDCE reported imports in the “vehicles other than railway, tramway” – those under Chapter 87 in the Harmonised System (HS) of Tariff Nomenclature – at $773.940 million for the first half, down 31.41 per cent year-on-year from $1.128 billion.
“Rot’yon” and Chapter 87 items respectively accounted for 3.73 per cent and 6.33 per cent of the $12.229 billion in total imports for the January-June period posted by the GDCE.
In an interview with The Post on July 17, Royal Academy of Cambodia economist Hong Vanak highlighted two likely causes for the dip in “rot’yon” imports: a general cutback in non-essential spending amid sluggish domestic and global economic conditions, and an uptick in the output capacity of local auto assembly plants.
Regarding the latter, Vanak commented that investments in local vehicle manufacturing or assembly plants are having a considerable beneficial economic impact on Cambodia.
“For Cambodia, the fall in ‘rot’yon’ imports is primarily due to people opting for brand-new cars assembled in local plants, rather than being a reflection of slower economic growth,” he suggested.
He also remarked that more export-focused auto parts factories are sprouting up in the Kingdom, manufacturing items such as tyres, seats, motors and electrical and car wiring systems, typically for industrial enterprises abroad.
Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) secretary-general Sok Chenda Sophea mentioned at end-March that vehicle-makes assembled in the Kingdom include Dongfeng, Ford, Hyundai, Isuzu, Kia, Ssangyong, Soueast and Toyota.
Ngorn Saing, CEO of RMA (Cambodia) Plc (RMAC), the exclusive distributor of Ford vehicles in Cambodia, on July 11 reported that the firm’s assembly plant in Pursat province’s easternmost district of Krakor produced approximately 3,000 Ranger pickup trucks and Everest SUVs (sport utility vehicles) in about a year of operation, exclusively for the Cambodian market.
He was delivering a speech at an event commemorating the Ford assembly plant’s first anniversary, in which he made the claim that this would improve the US brand’s standing in the Cambodian market.
Saing also hinted at plans to manufacture necessary components in-house.
RMAC, which has a bond listed on the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX), on June 16, 2022 inaugurated the Ford assembly plant – the Kingdom’s first – which was reportedly valued at $21 million at the time.
“We have so far built 3,000 Ford Ranger Wildtraks and Ford Everests to feed domestic demand. Ford’s presence marks the beginning of the Cambodian automotive industry’s transition from assembly to manufacturing. This will be a game changer,” Saing said.
The commerce ministry reported that, in 2022, Cambodia imported a total of $1.492 billion worth of “rot’yon” -class automotive motor vehicles, up 23.6 per cent versus the $1.207 billion logged in 2021. Similarly, the GDCE put last year’s Chapter 87 imports at $2.375 billion last year, up 20.70 per cent over $1.967 billion in 2021.
“Rot’yon” and Chapter 87 items respectively made up 4.98 per cent and 7.93 per cent of the $29.942 billion in total imports for 2022 posted by the GDCE.