Cambodia’s garment industry to experience slow growth

Published in The Financial Express on December 12, 2017

The Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC) said that the growth of the Southeast Asian country’s garment industry will slow down next year.

Concerns about the impact of next year’s election and competition from lower-cost or more efficient Asian rivals will slow the growth, the GMAC said.

The association, representing 600 factories that employ around 700,000 people, said it expected export growth of 3.0 to 4.0 per cent next year from a rate of 8.0 per cent in the first nine months of 2017.

In 2016, their garment exports were worth $6.3 billion and they reached $4.9 billion in the first seven months of 2017, reports Reuters.

Cambodia’s factories supply global brands including Gap Inc, Sweden-based H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB, and sportswear brands Nike, Puma and Adidas, among others.

Over the past two decades, the country has been the sixth fastest expanding economy in the world, with an average GDP growth rate of 7.6 per cent, according to the World Bank.

Cambodia is due to hold elections in July next year.