TAIWANESE curtain manufacturer Nien Made Enterprise Co Ltd said the Vietnam-Cambodia border closure would affect shipments of Cambodian-made products, the Taipei Times reported on Monday.

The company ships products from the Cambodian plant through the Port of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, it said.

The company – whose product portfolio includes window coverings such as Venetian blinds, shutters and shades – said it had prepared contingency plans to mitigate the effects of the closure.

The restrictions would affect shipments of its ready-made window coverings from Cambodian, Nien Made told Taipei Times.

Nien Made has four production bases in China’s Dongguan and Shandong, as well as a factory in Cambodia.

“Nien Made has informed its big-box clients about these policies and will make good use of its Cambodian warehouse facilities.

“Our shipments might be rerouted to Cambodia’s Sihanoukville Port to ease latent impacts,” the company said.

To facilitate cross border trade, last week, Cambodia and Vietnam agreed to allow cargo trailers to enter the common Bavet-Moc Bai border, located in Cambodia’ Svay Rieng province (Bavet) and Vietnam’s Tay Ninh province (Moc Bai), a government press release said.

It stated that cargo trailers were allowed to enter the border gate’s “white zone” if they followed certain measures such as changing drivers, the truck cab and containers. The rules will apply until the Covid-19 disease is under control.

“Cambodian authorities have allowed Vietnamese cargo trailers to pass through its dry ports to facilitate distribution, but drivers must wear a full anti-virus protective suit,” it said.

GMAC deputy secretary-general Kaing Monika told The Post on Monday that the border has been closed for general crossing only.

Monika said the movements of goods in and out of both countries are still allowed if the measures stated were followed. “There was hiccup last week, but the process is quite smooth now.

“We acknowledge the high level of risk posed by the virus, but supporting the economy is also important. That’s why we have kept borders open for trade but implemented safety measures. There’s no trade-off between healthcare and the economy.

“They are after all both sides of the same coin. We need to keep the economy going as if it stops functioning, it will have further impacts, especially on our resources to provide healthcare.

“We will have to strictly follow the health and safety instructions,” he said.

Nien Made Enterprise Co Ltd reported that last year, net income grew 24.1 per cent year-on-year to $148.51 million, with earnings per share rising to a record $0.50, up from $0.41 in 2018, Taipei Times said.

Consolidated revenue increased 9.4 per cent to $790 million last year, thanks to market share gains, better custom-made window covering prices and improved production efficiency, the company said.

In the first two months of this year, Nien Made’s consolidated revenue declined 8.19 per cent annually to $101.85 million due to delayed factory production in China last month amid the Covid-19 outbreak.