THE US embassy has rebutted reports that its ambassador said America intends to raise trade tariffs for Cambodian garment exports this year.

An article by Radio Free Asia online Friday said the US Ambassador to Cambodia Carol Rodley indicated America would end tariff reductions on Cambodian garments in 2010.

US Public Affairs Spokesman John Johnson said Monday the ambassador had been “misquoted”. In an email, he wrote that the ambassador had stated the quota system was no longer in place.

Ken Loo, secretary general of Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC), confirmed that the quota system ended in 2005, and that Cambodia enjoys no subsidies on its imports or exports with the US.

But he emphasised that the introduction of duty-free trade with the US – Cambodia’s biggest market – would be the “single largest factor” to affect the Kingdom’s garment trade and help ensure its future.