Cambodia’s economy to grow 6 pct in 2024: report

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) — Cambodia’s economy is projected to grow 6 percent in 2024, slightly lower than the earlier prediction of 6.6 percent, due to slower-than-expected growth in some sectors, especially construction and real estate, according to a mid-year report released on Monday.
The Southeast Asian country’s economy is mainly driven by garment, footwear and travel goods exports, tourism, agriculture, construction and real estate.
The report, issued by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said the industrial sector, mainly garments, shoes and travel goods, as well as construction, was projected to grow 7.9 percent this year.
The service sector, particularly tourism, transport and telecom, trade and real estate, was expected to increase 5.8 percent, and agriculture was predicted to rise 0.7 percent, the report said.
“Construction is expected to recover at a slow pace of 1.1 percent, as real estate is forecast to grow 1.2 percent,” it said.
Hoe Ee Khor, chief economist of ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO), said that Cambodia remained among countries with the fastest growth in the region.
“The construction sector may experience a slower recovery pace, with growth potentially falling short of pre-pandemic levels due to the prolonged real estate downturn,” he told Xinhua in an e-mail. “The boost in infrastructure investment will partially offset the weakness in the real estate sector.” ■