Farmers in Banteay Meanchey province transport harvested cassava to international wholesalers. Post Staff
Cambodian exports to the member countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) were valued at more than $3.6 billion in the first four months of 2025, an increase of nearly 8% compared to the same period last year.
The RCEP is a free trade agreement (FTA), originally initiated by the 10 members of ASEAN. Currently, it has 15 member countries, including the 10 ASEAN nations and five others — China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
According to the Ministry of Commerce, between January and April, Cambodia exported goods worth nearly $3.62 billion to RCEP signatory countries, an increase of 7.6% over the same period in 2024. The largest RCEP markets for the Kingdom’s exports were Vietnam, China, Japan, Thailand and South Korea.
In addition to exports, Cambodia also imported about $9.1 billion worth of goods from RCEP members, up 18.85% from the $6.83 billion imported last year.
The Kingdom’s total January to April trade with RCEP members equaled $12.93 billion, an increase of 15.47%. It accounted for 66% of Cambodia's total international trade during that period, which was $19.5 billion.
Lor Vichet, vice-president of the Cambodia-China Commerce Association (CCCA), told The Post on June 9 that although Cambodia's exports to RCEP countries have steadily increased over the past two to three years, the export value still lags behind that of North America (USA and Canada) and the EU. He explained that one reason for the lower exports to RCEP is the similarity of product types among ASEAN countries.
He added that Cambodia could significantly expand its exports to global markets, especially RCEP members, if it could attract more direct investment into the manufacturing of auto parts, vehicle assembly, chip production or other advanced technology. Currently, Cambodia's industrial exports are still mostly in the textile sector.
“Although RCEP is currently the largest market in the world — representing about one-third of the global market — Cambodia cannot rapidly increase its exports just yet,” he said.
“I do not expect RCEP exports to surpass those to North America and the EU in the next five years,” he added.
Commerce ministry spokesperson Penn Sovicheat noted that since the RCEP agreement came into force on January 1, 2022 (alongside the Cambodia-China FTA), it has brought many positive outcomes. The agreement provides signatory countries with tariff concessions on various goods, as well as technology transfer, human resource development and job opportunities driven by foreign direct investment (FDI).
“The official entry into force of the RCEP agreement in 2022 became a driving factor for Cambodia’s long-term export growth. Under this agreement, Cambodia has benefited from reduced tariffs on some goods, which has created opportunities to promote exports,”he said.
“Due to the improved economic conditions in the region and the world during the early months of this year, Cambodia’s exports to RCEP countries have continued to increase. China remains one of Cambodia’s key markets, importing a variety of agricultural products such as rice, bananas, mangoes, longans and durians,” he added.
The RCEP member nations represent approximately 2.2 billion people, or 30% of the global population, and generate $26.2 trillion in GDP — equivalent to 30% of global GDP. The members account for around 28% of global trade.
