Official: Cambodia likely to weather world economic upheaval

PHNOM PENH, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- A senior official of the Cambodian Ministry of Economy and Finance said that the Kingdom is likely to weather the recent global financial crisis, national media reported Wednesday.

The global financial crisis will affect Cambodia's economy, but for the time being there is no substantial impact, Aun Porn Moniroth, Secretary of State for the Ministry of Economy and Finance, told the Phnom Penh Post in an interview.

"Cambodia's financial sector has little direct exposure to outside markets. We have no stock market, and banks in Cambodia have not borrowed much money from foreign banks," Aun Porn Moniroth said.

"We do not expect a significant impact, but we may experience a secondary impact through countries such as (South) Korea," he said.

"(South) Korea has been affected by this crisis, and it has invested in and opened bank branches in Cambodia. So there will bean impact, but we do not know the full extent yet," he added.

In addition, Aun Porn Moniroth said that the Cambodian garment sector would be affected by the crisis in particular.

"We predict that the crisis will affect exports such as garments, but this is an indirect impact," he said.

"The crisis will primarily affect economic growth in the countries that serve as our principal markets. Demand in those markets could drop, so our exports will do the same," he added.