A group of Chinese investors Tuesday expressed interest in studying and identifying potential cashew suppliers for future exports, while Cambodia has proposed the group to invest in the processing of various agricultural products, particularly rice and rubber.
The interest was expressed during a meeting between Chea Vuthy, Secretary General of the Cambodian Investment Board (CIB) of the CDC, and a delegation of 19 Chinese investment companies led by Liu Yong, President of the Young Investors Association in Yunnan province, Kunming city, China, said a statement of the CDC.
Welcoming the delegation, Vuthy said that Cambodia and China have recently signed several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), including the ‘Industry and Technology Corridor’, ‘Fish and Rice Corridor’ and ‘Digital Economy Infrastructure’.
“The investment situation in Cambodia has been growing year by year, especially investment sources from China, which have consistently ranked first or second over the past decade. In fact, in 2024, investment from China contributed to approximately 50 percent of total investment capital,” Vuthy said.
He also highlighted the Royal Government’s support and encouragement for investment projects in the cashew sector in Cambodia, especially Prime Minister Hun Manet’s vision to establish a cashew industrial park in Kampong Thom province, which will help improve the business environment in this priority sector in Cambodia.
Vuthy presented the cashew industry value chain, starting from the upstream, especially related to the collection, drying and storage of cashew nuts.
He urged the delegation to examine the possibility of investing in any part of the cashew industry value chain in Cambodia or consider investing in other sectors, such as agricultural processing, especially rice, and rubber processing to supply the local industry.
Vuthy reminded the delegation of large Chinese companies that have come to Cambodia to invest in the development of special economic zones and invest in new industrial clusters, such as tyre production, electronic equipment assembly, rubber processing, etc.
In response, Liu Yong expressed his interest in studying and finding cashew suppliers for export.
Liu said that in the past, he had been looking for cashew suppliers but he did not know the exact source and network, and taking this opportunity and through this meeting, he hoped that Vuthy would point out the exact source to further increase his confidence.
Other delegates have expressed their strong interest in investing in Cambodia.
The delegates from the 19 companies are active in the fields of agriculture, healthcare, construction and real estate, technology, energy, printing and packaging, food, hotels and hospitality, business management, legal consulting services, car sales and maintenance services, and vocational training.
The Young Investors Association in Yunnan province has about 1,500 members with business interests in various fields, and these enterprises are looking to expand their investments abroad, especially in Cambodia.
According to the report of the General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia (GDCE), trade volume between Cambodia and China soared to over $15 billion from January to December 2024, a 23 percent increase compared to $12.26 billion in the same period last year.
Cambodia’s export value to China was $1.75 billion, an increase of 18.4 percent compared to the same period last year, while Cambodia’s imports from China were worth $13.43 billion, up 24.6 percent.
The Kingdom produced 850,000 tonnes of cashew nuts last year, up 26.8 percent and exported 815,000 tonnes of cashew nuts, up 31 percent.
