Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Dr. Pen Simorn, the government delegate in charge of the custom department, said that there is a significant drop in the volume of import and export since the beginning of 2009. This drop seriously affects the custom duty revenue. In January, the duty revenue dropped by 20% and the import of car parts dropped by almost 70%. He provided all these statistics during a meeting held on Monday, to summarize the custom department work for January 2009. He indicated that the significant drop in the volume of international import and export in January 2009 will seriously affect the collection of custom duty, and the sectors that are affected the most are the garment sector and the agricultural products. He indicated also that the import of motor vehicles and parts dropped by 2/3 (approximately 70%). He added that the duty revenue dropped by 20% in January 2009 as compared to January 2008. This is an alarming sign and a threat for the ministry of Economy and Finance which requires a set amount of duty revenue collection. According the 2009 budget, it was determined that the amount of custom duty that must be collected should amount to $585 million in 2009.
