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
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS