The Royal Group Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone (PPSEZ) exported $492.7 million worth of merchandise in the first seven months of this year, a sizeable 29 per cent year-on-year increase, according to the developer.

Public-listed Phnom Penh SEZ Plc (PPSP) said in an August 3 statement that exports via the special economic zone (SEZ) has remained on a positive growth path thanks to the government’s effective control of Covid-19, which the industrial park developer noted is attracting more and more foreign direct investment (FDI).

PPSP CEO Hiroshi Uematsu credited the export growth and creation of new jobs to “the production expansion of automotive and electronic parts factories”, as well as the “massive investment of Marvel Garment Co Ltd, a subsidiary of the largest vertically integrated knitwear manufacturer in China”.

“With political and social stability and new attractive investment law in Cambodia, we are confident [in our ability to] attract more manufacturers, and the volume of export will be boosted more and more,” he added.

As of July 31, the 357ha PPSEZ now houses 102 tenants that employ 39,100 people, marking a 42.9 per cent increase year-on-year.

Meanwhile, imports and exports handled at the 11.13sq km Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone (SSEZ), the Kingdom’s largest SEZ in terms of size and occupancy, rose by 38.23 per cent to $1.374 billion in the first half of 2022 from $994 million a year ago.

Data by the General Department of Customs and Excise showed that in the first half of 2022, Cambodia’s international trade totalled $27.244 billion or 20.158 per cent more than the corresponding period last year.

Of that, imports grew 11.913 per cent to $15.865 billion, while exports were valued at worth $11.379 billion, up 33.913 per cent. The Kingdom’s trade deficit for the first half narrowed by 21.009 per cent year-on-year to $4.486 billion.