Cambodia’s economy to remain resilient: World Bank

Cambodia’s economy is predicted to remain strong and resilient for the next two years, driven by a shift to higher value-added manufacturing, despite concerns over political stability and the slowed growth of both the construction and garment sectors, the World Bank said yesterday in its latest review of the Cambodian economy. GDP growth will remain robust at 6.9% in 2018 and 6.7% in 2019, thanks to increased export diversification of footwear, electrical machinery and auto parts as well as healthy inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI), according to Cambodia Economic Update for October 2017. The report noted that in 2012, the Kingdom had 46 factories dedicated to electrical machinery and auto parts, accounting for a 5.1% share of the manufacturing industry, and as of August of this year, the number of factories had increased to 121 and accounted for 7.1% of manufacturing. Sanchez Martine, senior country economist for the World Bank in Cambodia, said that while there were election-related stability concerns that could see potential investors taking a waiting-and-see approach until the dust settles, the World Bank’s FDI projections showed no sign of downturn. He added that FDI would keep coming in since the overall environment is still favorable, and with a dollarized economy, investors have less risk of asset depreciation. (Source: Phnom Penh Post)