Cambodia: An FDI-Powered Growth Engine

Cambodia, once a country synonymous with the ravages of civil war, has been making enormous strides toward fiscal success. In the period between 1994 and 2015, its economic growth averaged 7.6 percent, ranking sixth in the world. With GDP nearing US$20 billion in 2016, Cambodia officially transitioned from a "least developed" to a "lower middle income" country designation. The exporting of goods such as timber, rubber and garments, which constitutes 45.4 percent of the country's GDP, grew 11 percent year-on-year.

A huge driver of the economic boom is foreign direct investment, increasing by 25 percent to total US$2.15 billion in 2016. The country's investment laws provide various incentives, such as those on profit taxes and import duties, and include regional inducements through Cambodia's membership in ASEAN, WTO and similar organizations. The biggest source of FDI is China, who invested US$511 million last year. The highest injections of capital go to the financial and manufacturing sectors, followed by real estate and agriculture.

Specifically, Cambodia's textile industry enjoys the biggest slice of the FDI pie, with its consistently high performance further enabled by abundant natural resources, government support and low labor costs. This sector accounted for 60.8 percent of the nation's exports in 2016, as goods were shipped to the U.S., Europe and Asia. An overwhelming majority of textile workers are women, who not only gain independence through generating their own income but also support their families.


柬埔寨：外資新樂園

曾和飽受戰火摧殘畫上等號的柬埔寨，已大步邁向財政方面的成功。在 1994 年到 2015 年期間，該國經濟的平均成長率為 7.6%，名列全球第六。隨著國內生產毛額於 2016 年趨近 200 億美元，柬埔寨正式從「低度開發」轉變成「較低中等收入」的國家。木材、橡膠與衣服等商品的出口占了該國國內生產毛額的 45.4%，年增長率為 11%。
柬埔寨經濟繁榮的一個強大驅動力是外國直接投資，在 2016 年增加了 25%，總金額達到 21.5 億美元。該國的投資法提供了各種刺激動力，例如在利潤稅和進口關稅方面，也包含柬埔寨在東南亞國家協會、世界貿易組織及相似機構的會員國身分這個地域性誘因。外國直接投資的最大來源是中國，該國去年投資了 5. 11 億美元。挹注金額最高的產業是金融業和製造業，接著是房地產與農業。
確切來說，柬埔寨的紡織業享有外國直接投資的最大份額，原因在於其豐富的自然資源、政府的支持及低廉的勞工成本進一步加持的一貫高產值。由於商品出貨至美國、歐洲與亞洲，紡織業在 2016 年占全國出口額的 60.8%。紡織勞動者絕大多數為女性，她們不但透過賺取自己的收入來獲得獨立，也能夠養家餬口。