China-Cambodia trade reached a record 33.33 billion yuan (approximately $4.53 billion) in the first quarter of 2025, a 13.1% year-on-year increase, outpacing China’s average trade growth with ASEAN by 6 percentage points. (Source: Chinese Customs via CCTV, April 2025)
Agricultural Products Lead Growth in Bilateral Trade
Agriculture has been at the forefront of this trade expansion. Chinese imports of Cambodian farm products totaled 980 million yuan, up 12.2% year-on-year, representing over 25% of total imports from Cambodia.
Standout performers include:
- Cassava chips, with a staggering 879.7% increase
- Cocoa powder, up 133.6%
- Fresh longan, continuing to gain popularity among Chinese consumers
Meanwhile, China’s agricultural exports to Cambodia surged 61.9%, reaching 640 million yuan—a sign of deepening two-way agribusiness ties.
Manufacturing and Industrial Trade Strengthens
Beyond agriculture, the automotive and energy sectors also posted major gains. In Q1 2025:
- China exported 840 million yuan worth of vehicles to Cambodia, a 183.7% increase
- Exports of lithium batteries jumped 465.7%, reaching 100 million yuan
Cambodia’s natural rubber exports to China also rose sharply, supporting China’s tire manufacturing supply chain and indicating stronger industrial interdependence.
Textile trade remained solid as well, with Chinese fabric exports to Cambodia rising for a seventh consecutive quarter, supporting Cambodia’s growing light manufacturing industry.
“China-Cambodia trade has achieved consistent double-digit growth, fueled by strong economic complementarity,” said Zhou Shixin, Director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies.
Free Trade Agreements and Currency Use Driving Momentum
The growth has been further bolstered by the China-Cambodia Free Trade Agreement and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). These frameworks continue to reduce barriers and improve trade efficiency.
Cross-border yuan transactions surged in Q1 2025 to 5 billion yuan, a 45% increase year-on-year. Of this, goods trade accounted for 1.3 billion yuan, up 23%, according to the People’s Bank of China (PBC) via Xinhua.
In 2024, cross-border yuan settlements doubled to 20 billion yuan, with goods trade making up 4 billion yuan—about 9% of total bilateral trade.
This reflects the yuan’s expanding role in regional trade, as both countries benefit from local currency policies that streamline payment and settlement processes.
