Cambodia records 17 pct rise in garment, footwear, travel goods export in first four months
Cambodia records 17 pct rise in garment, footwear, travel goods export in first four months
Cambodia exported garment, footwear, and travel products (GFT) worth $3,763 million in the first four months of 2024, up 17 percent from the $3,211 million reported a year earlier, according to a report released by the Ministry of Commerce on Wednesday.
The report said apparel and textiles accounted for $2,748 million during the January-April period, up 20.4 percent year over year.
The report said footwear represented $453.7 million, up 3.8 percent from a year earlier, while travel goods accounted for $562 million, up 14 percent year on year.
During a press conference on Cambodia’s economic outlook for 2024, Poullang Doung, the Asian Development Bank-Cambodia’s senior economics officer, highlighted the pivotal role of the GFT sector. He projected that the sector’s growth would contribute significantly to Cambodia’s overall economic growth, which is estimated at 5.8 percent this year.
He said the outlook for GFT exports is “positive” and that the GFT export has gained momentum since the last quarter of 2023.
The GFT industry is the largest foreign exchange earner in Southeast Asian countries.
The GFT industry, which is Cambodia’s largest foreign exchange earner, is a significant employer in the country. It currently encompasses about 1,680 factories and branches, providing jobs to approximately 918,000 workers, with a majority being females, according to the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training.
