The nation has received approval from the Cambodian government to open a trade center in Phnom Penh, the semi-official Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) said.
The center, which is expected to be officially opened next month at the earliest, will raise the number of the nation’s trade offices to eight in the 10 ASEAN nations, which is Taiwan’s second-largest export market, TAITRA said.
Taiwan has similar offices to promote bilateral trade in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam.
Among ASEAN economies, Cambodia has been eyed by Taiwanese businesses as a potential investment destination after anti-China riots in Vietnam in May — which caused serious damage to many Taiwanese-invested factories — raised questions about Vietnam’s viability as a production base.
Taiwan was encouraged by an estimate by the IMF that Cambodia’s GDP growth will average 7.3 percent between last year and 2017, TAITRA said.
There has been high demand in Cambodia for many products produced in Taiwan, including automobile parts, bicycles, food processing machines, agriculture machines and tools, medical equipment and devices, construction hardware, wood processing machines and solar energy panels, the council said.
According to statistics from the Council for the Development of Cambodia, Taiwan injected US$935 million into 298 investment projects in Cambodia from 1994 to 2012.
Last year, Taiwan’s exports to Cambodia totaled US$706 million, more than double its exports of US$320 million in 2009, the figures showed.
TAITRA chairman Wang Chih-kang (王志剛), who is due to attend the trade center’s opening ceremony, said yesterday that the step to further relations with ASEAN countries helps boost the nation’s chances of joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.
Cambodia is playing an increasingly important role within ASEAN, Wang said, citing the IMF forecast.
Taiwan first applied to establish a trade office in Phnom Penh in 2009, and opened an office in fellow ASEAN member Myanmar at the end of last year.
Cambodia and Myanmar, both close to China, have changed their attitudes toward the nation after they saw that Taiwanese firms have contributed a lot to Vietnam’s economy in recent years, Wang said.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
RSS