The securities sector in Cambodia has developed steadily since its establishment, with nine companies now having listed their equity securities on CSX.
Cambodia's outward direct investment declined 13.45 per cent during the first nine months of last year compared to the same period in 2018, the National Bank of Cambodia’s (NBC) Balance of Payments Statistics Bulletin said on Monday.
The report said the investment capital reached $81.38 million during the period – down from $94.03 million year-on-year.
However, the capital was worth more than $29.89 million in the third quarter, up 11.98 per cent from $26.69 million in 2018’s third quarter, it said.
The report did not identify the countries in which Cambodia invests.
In 2018, Cambodian outward direct investment was worth more than $122.9 million, up 7.73 per cent from 2017’s $114.08 million, NBC data shows.
Cambodia Chamber of Commerce vice-president Lim Heng said on Thursday that Cambodia’s outward direct investment has increased concurrently with foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Kingdom.
Cambodia mainly invests abroad in sectors such as finance, real estate and construction, and the export-import of goods, said Heng.
“As far as I know, besides the Lao and Myanmar financial sectors that Cambodians currently invest in, more of the Kingdom’s investors are planning to put money in China’s construction sector,” he said.
With an open economy and gradual growth, Heng expressed optimism that Cambodian investments abroad will continue to grow, especially in recently booming economies. “Cambodia also encourages its investors to invest abroad,” he said.
Though Cambodians mainly invest in Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar and China, he said, they are seeking investment opportunities in other countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh.
Cambodia attracted more than $3.588 billion in foreign direct investment last year – an increase of 11.7 per cent on 2018’s $3.212 billion, the NBC’s “Macroeconomic and Banking Progress 2019 Report and 2020 Outlook” said last week.
Of this, the financial sector received FDIs worth $2.385 billion, with the non-financial sector receiving $1.203 billion.
A breakdown of the data by country showed that Chinese FDI accounted for 43 per cent, South Korean (11 per cent), Vietnamese (seven per cent), Japanese and Singaporean (six per cent), and other countries (27 per cent).
