PHNOM PENH: The Prime Minister of Cambodia has said that although Cambodia is a less developed country, it has a highly open economy through regional and global economic integration, which is in line with the objectives of the ASEAN Agreement.

Addressing the Opening Ceremony of the High-Level Consultation Forum on the Occasion of the 10th Anniversary of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) and the Official Announcement of the Second Book of the ASEAN Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) on Wednesday morning, 2 November, Prime Minister Hun Sen said that Cambodia welcomes and will always aim to establish a free trade area, even though Cambodia is a less developed country.

In addition to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) entering into force on 1 January 2022, there is also the Cambodia-China Bilateral Free Trade Agreement that entered into force, and the Cambodia-Korea Free Trade Agreement will also enter into force on 1 December 2022.

The Prime Minister added that Cambodia is continuing to examine the possibility of free trade agreements with other partner countries.

A study by ERIA showed that at the beginning of 2022, Cambodia's gross domestic product (GDP) was likely to increase by 2% to 3.8%. At the same time, exports were expected to grow by around 9.4% to 18%, and annual job opportunities by 3.2% to 6.2%. Meanwhile, annual tax revenue was set to increase by about 2% to 3.9%, while overall investment was expected to increase by 23.4%.