Phnom Penh Post - Short Story: Exports drop on eurozone debt crisis

Cambodia’s exports declined by 18 percent in April compared with the month previous due to economic spillover from the Greek sovereign debt crisis, the Ministry of Commerce said. The domestic garment sector was slowed by falling European consumption in April caused by Greece’s woes, Department of Statistics and Information director Kong Putheara said. “Many neighbouring European countries were impacted by the Greek crisis, lowering people’s demand and drawing our total exports down,” he said. Of April’s US$198 million in total exports, $175 million were garment products, according to Ministry of Commerce statistics. Garment exports to the European Union declined by 18 percent in April, along with a 3 percent fall in shipments to the US and a 33 percent drop to other markets, its figures show. However, year-on-year exports rebounded 9.48 percent from $181 million in April 2009. Kong Putheara said overall positive trends for the Kingdom’s exports as a recovering global economy caused an increase in demand. “People [in international markets] are starting to gets jobs, so they have money to afford our products,” he said.