Chinese Debt Under Control, Hun Sen Says
Prime Minister Hun Sen brushed off concerns that Cambodia could fall into a “debt trap” due to the billions it was borrowing from China.
Nhim Sokhorn May 31, 1:54 pm
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Prime Minister Hun Sen brushed off concerns that Cambodia could fall into a “debt trap” due to the billions it was borrowing from China.
Personal loans taken out by Cambodians reached a total of $6.7 billion in the first three months of the year, a 7.5 percent increase on the previous quarter, credit reporting firm Credit Bureau Cambodia (CBC) said.
Analysts say many in rural areas are seeing few benefits from the country’s brisk economic growth, and yet may be among the most seriously affected if Cambodia loses duty-free trade with Europe over human rights concerns.
Cambodia’s rapid 7.5 percent GDP growth last year came amid ballooning private debt, increased reliance on an uncertain construction boom, and threats to the country’s main exports due to politics, according to recent reports from the World Bank and National Bank of Cambodia.
The World Bank has warned of the economic risks of Cambodia losing preferential trade access to the European Union, and urged the government to be ready with measures to mitigate the potential shocks to the economy.
The Asian Development Bank has warned that Cambodia’s rapid economic growth has been put at risk by a growing gap between the skills demanded by industry and the poor education and training of the population.
Following the mass arrest of more than a dozen land protesters in Preah Vihear province in January, one detainee is missing, and his family is raising concerns over his safety.
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