During a meeting on 15 June, Cambodia’s Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak asked the Swedish Ambassador Björn Häggmark to call on Swedish investors such as furniture giant IKEA and automaker VOLVO to explore business opportunities in the country.
Pan Sorasak’s request came as the outgoing Ambassador, who is based in Thailand, made his farewell visit to Cambodia.
The bilateral trade volume between Cambodia and Sweden appears to be slowing with $ 64 million recorded for 2020 but just $23 million in the first five months of 2021. During the meeting, the parties discussed and exchanged views on promoting the multilateral trading system operated by the World Trade Organization and the Minister welcomed cooperation between the two nations in key areas including public-private partnership support in Cambodia, trade, education, and civil service capacity building.
Lim Heng Cambodia Chamber of Commerce vice-president suggested further cooperative work to build mutually rewarding partnership opportunities and Minister Pan Sorasak highlighted the significant growth recorded in auto-parts processing, as well as furniture and components in recent years and asked the Ambassador to encourage Swedish businessmen and investors to seek business opportunities in those areas.
The Minister also noted that tropical foods and fruit processing are viable areas for investment.
Ambassador Björn Häggmark said that Cambodia’s economy has been able to grow due to its adherence to a multilateralist system and the establishment of regulations covering the private sector and foreign investment. He said he believed that the Embassy of Sweden in Cambodia, although based in Bangkok, will continue the cooperation with the Ministry of Commerce to promote Cambodian-Swedish dialogue and trade relations.
Source: Khmer Times
