The First Eight Months Of The West Port Special Economic Zone Becoming The "Engine" Of Cambodia'S Economic Development Saw A Year-On-Year Growth Of 27.27%!

According to the latest data of Cambodia Customs, from January to August this year, enterprises in the Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone have realized a total import and export volume of 2.226 billion US dollars, up 27.27% year on year, accounting for about 6.96% of Cambodia's total national trade, maintaining the momentum of rapid growth and increasing their contribution to Cambodia's economy again. This achievement stands out against the background of the year-on-year decline of 14.5% in Cambodia's total international trade in the first eight months, which fully reflects the toughness and vitality of the development of Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone, and further highlights its role as an "engine" for Cambodia's economic development. Just as Wang Wentian, the Chinese ambassador to Cambodia, commented when participating in the "Achievement Exhibition of the West Port Special Economic Zone on the 10th Anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative", the Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone has become the "locomotive" of the economic development of Sihanouk Province.

In 2022, the total import and export volume of enterprises in Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone will account for about 4.8% of Cambodia. In the first eight months of this year, the proportion of the total import and export volume of enterprises in the whole region in the whole country has increased significantly. In this regard, Chen Jiangang, chairman of the company of the West Port Special Economic Zone, said that this is closely related to the steady progress of the construction of the upgraded version 2.0 of the Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone, which also shows that the efforts of the Special Economic Zone in optimizing the industrial structure have shown initial results, and the development momentum has been further released.

In recent years, under the guidance of Cambodia's industrial development plan, Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone has gradually promoted the optimization and upgrading of industrial structure. From the first phase of industry, which focuses on labor-intensive industries such as textiles and clothing, bags and leather goods, and wood products, to the second phase of industry, it has turned to give priority to the development of high value-added, innovative and competitive emerging industries and manufacturing industries, focusing on the introduction of hardware machinery, building materials and home furnishing, auto parts tires, new photovoltaic materials, fine chemicals and other skill and technology intensive industries and industrial chain supporting enterprises. Today, a large number of industry leading enterprises and large-scale enterprises have become the "pacesetters" for the high-quality development of the special zone, playing an important role in deepening and implementing the construction of the 2.0 upgrade version of the special zone. Among them, General Tire Technology (Cambodia) Co., Ltd., which entered the special zone in 2022, is one of them.

General Tire Technology (Cambodia) Co., Ltd., with a total investment of 300 million US dollars, is the largest investment project in the region at present and officially opened on May 22 this year. Entering the general tire workshop, intelligent production equipment is booming. It is amazing that it only takes 38 seconds for half parts to form a 20 inch tire. According to Tao Guozhong, the general manager of the company, at present, the daily output of the factory can reach about 7000 tires, which will be gradually increased in the future. It is expected to reach the full production capacity in 2024, when the annual output can reach 5 million semi steel tires and 900000 full steel tires, which will not only greatly boost local employment, but also further promote the development of Cambodia's rubber industry.

At present, the new Cambodian government has been successfully established, and the new government proposes to use the Five Corners Strategy to promote the country into a new development period. The stable and favorable business environment provides an excellent opportunity for Sihanouk Port Special Economic Zone to continue to accelerate investment attraction. Chen Jiangang said that as the largest and best developed special economic zone in Sihanoukville Province, Sihanoukville Port Special Economic Zone will actively integrate into Cambodia's national development strategy, seize the opportunity, continue to make efforts, strive to become the leading area of Cambodia's "industrial development corridor", and make new contributions to Cambodia's economic and social development.