2016年CRI Chinese entrepreneurs seek business opportunities in Cambodia

The latest economic stats show China has been Cambodia's largest trading partner for the last 3-years, as well as its largest foreign investor 1.

Numerous Chinese companies have been making their way into the Cambodian market for various reasons, including its popularity among holiday makers 2 around the world.

As such, Chinese airlines are among those who have been taking advantage.

China Southern now runs direct routes from its hub in Guangzhou to Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, as well as the popular tourist city of Siem Reap.

Zheng Yuanning runs China's Southern's Cambodian offices. He's been working in the country for the last 5-years.

"We are optimistic about the market, which is already viewed as a comparatively optimal 3 market among all southeast Asian countries. It already has a large growth in business travelers. Beyond this, China and Cambodia maintain extremely close diplomatic ties, which is also very helpful in creating business opportunities. "

China Southern already has plans to offer additional flights into Phnom Penh.

Chinese government stats show that through the first half of the year, 450-thousand Chinese travelers visited Cambodia, a 12 percent increase from last year.

Another growth area for Chinese business is the coastal 4 city of Sihanoukville, which is home to Cambodia's largest port.

It's also home to a special economic zone established for Chinese businesses.

It was established with investment from China's Hongdou Group.

Hongdou's Cambodia Director, Chen Jiangang, says since being launched 8-years ago, the Special Economic Zone in Sihanoukville has attracted hundreds of Chinese companies and created some 16-thousand jobs, many of them in the production and services sectors 5.

"Cambodia is experiencing a transformation 6 from an agriculturally-dominated country to an industrialized one. A number of excellent companies from China have come here, bringing with them their technical prowess, which will help Cambodia develop. Cambodia also has an abundance of labour, land and space, which provide us with a lot of opportunities for potential growth."

Local Cambodian observers often point to Chinese investment as one of the factors which have managed to stabilize 7 growth in the country.

Tuan Sarath the director of Cambodian National Radio.

"As more and more Chinese investors 8 come to Cambodia, the local economy has seen steady growth, especially in sectors such as mining, road building and clothing, which offer quite a lot of job opportunities for local residents. The construction of roads and bridges is also beneficial for people's livelihood 9 here. And hopefully with better cooperation, we will see more improvements in the future."

On top of expanding business opportunities, the Chinese government has also helped Cambodia maintain its cultural heritage as well.