CAMBODIA’S business friendliness has declined in world rankings despite gains for exporters and entrepreneurs, according to a World Bank report.

The Making a Difference for Entrepreneurs report, which compared business regulations across 183 economies, ranked Cambodia 147th place for the ease of doing business, down from 145th place last year.

The drop came despite improved rankings in the ease of foreign trade and starting new companies.

Cambodia was the seventh most improved economy for trading across borders, climbing nine places to 118th. That was due to a reduction in the amount of paperwork for importing and exporting goods.

“Cambodia eliminated pre-shipment inspections, reducing the time and number of documents required for importing and exporting,” the report said.

Despite the change, the amount of paperwork needed to export goods remained the eighth highest in the world.

The ease of starting a business in Cambodia climbed three places over last year’s low base, to 170th.

However, the time needed to start a business still ranked poorly, at an average of 85 days – measured as the third longest in the East Asia-Pacific region.

Cambodia was also the third slowest country to issue construction permits, with an average wait of 709 days.