The Cambodia Travel Goods and Leather Association (CTLA) was officially launched on August 6 to better support and represent an industry that has experienced extraordinary growth over the past few years.
Production and exports in various industries are showing “positive signs” in general, with growth driving job creation, boosting household incomes and stimulating economic growth, Deputy Prime Minister Wen San’an said during an inauguration ceremony in the capital on Aug. 6. economy.
Sam An, one of Cambodia’s 10 Deputy Prime Ministers, suggested that in order to develop export markets for Cambodia’s travel goods and leather products, manufacturers must carefully monitor and manage the quality of their products and their competitiveness in target markets.
“Travel” is a name that includes suitcases, backpacks, handbags, purses and similar items.
Sam An said the CTLA will act as an intermediary between the government and relevant domestic and foreign private institutions to serve the interests of its members and accelerate the development of its industry.
She called on the association, its leaders and members to actively participate in strengthening the travel goods and leather goods industry while ensuring quality, international competitiveness and the industry’s contribution to the Cambodian economy.
Sam An emphasized that the government has provided incentives and paved the way for the private sector as well as investors looking to enter the Cambodian market in various ways. She largely attributes the continued rise in the value of the kingdom’s exports to overall peace, political stability and development in all respects.
The export market for Saudi travel goods and leather goods has rebounded dramatically after the COVID-19 pandemic calmed down, with sales rising as the global travel scene reopens, CTLA Honorary Chairman Ly Kunthai told The Washington Post on Aug. 7. further rise.
“Currently, orders from factories are also increasing, due to a number of reasons, such as more people traveling around the world after Covid-19 subsides, more students signing up for face-to-face learning, and growing household incomes,” he said.
He added that CTLA’s main goals are: to be a unified and centralized voice for the industry; to support and develop strategies to attract more buyers and investors; to work with authorities to optimize production processes and improve product quality levels; and to organize training for workers course.
“With the growing global demand for travel goods and leather products and the establishment of the association, I expect the number of overseas orders and investments in Cambodia to further increase as Cambodia offers favorable investments in addition to its diverse and skilled workforce. the law,” Quintiles said.
He said Cambodia currently has “about 120” travel goods and leather goods factories invested by entities from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan in Greater China and other regional countries and regions.
Quintiles listed the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea and some regional countries and regions as the main destination markets for Cambodia’s travel supplies and leather products, and revealed that “the association also plans to export to China, the world’s most populous market.” .
Cambodia exported travel goods and leather goods worth US$802.65 million in the first half of 2022 (the first half), up 59.48% year-on-year from about US$503.3 million, CTLA reported, adding that the US and the “European region” were the largest buyers .
According to data from the General Department of Customs of Cambodia (GDCE), Cambodia’s total international trade during the same period was US$27.244 billion, an increase of 20.158% over the same period last year.
Among them, the import was 15.865 billion US dollars, an increase of 11.913%, and the export was 11.379 billion US dollars, an increase of 33.913%. In the first half of the year, Saudi Arabia’s trade deficit narrowed by 21.009% year-on-year to $4.486 billion.
