Cambodian Garment Exports Drop 20 Pct in First 5 Months

Xinhua
Web Editor: Hu Weiwei

Cambodian government announced garment exports dropped 20 percent in the first five months to 909 million U.S. dollars compared with the same period last year, local English newspaper the Phnom Penh Post reported on Wednesday.

Hang Chuon Naron, secretary general of Ministry of Economy and Finance, said the decrease will not seriously damage the Kingdom's economy, as the decline will prove temporary and ought to end later this year.

"We expect garment exports will decline only 5 percent for the year overall," he said. "We hope garment exports will climb to 2.8 billion U.S. dollars later this year as the United States' economy is showing a higher demand for garments."

Cambodia exported 3.1 billion U.S. dollars worth of garments last year. Most went to the United States and the European Union.

Hang Chuon Naron was talking at a forum on Tuesday on the effects of the global economic crisis and strategies to overcome the challenges. The forum was attended by 300 people from government, NGOs and the private sector.