(Phnom Penh): Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet stated that the United States' decision to raise tariffs on goods from Cambodia, as well as from other countries around the world, is fundamentally a trade issue, particularly due to the trade volume gap observed by the US.
The premier spoke on Sunday (Apr. 27) during his meeting with leaders of Informal Economic Associations at OCIC, Phnom Penh.
Samdech Thipadei explained that overcoming the current trade challenges would make Cambodia stronger, emphasising that the imposition of tariffs on Cambodian goods is not the fault of Cambodia.
"Why impose tariffs? Because the US President, during this term, believes that when looking at the trade figures, exports to and imports from other countries are too unbalanced. He feels that other countries are taking excessive advantage of the US. Therefore, he wants to take action to reduce the trade gap," Samdech Thipadei underscored.
The premier continued, "Firstly, this tariff imposition is not our fault. The US government aims to rebalance benefits towards itself; no country is truly at fault. This measure affects around 180 countries. Secondly, have we done anything illegal? Have we acted unfairly to take advantage of others? No. We have acted legally, in accordance with World Trade Organization principles."
On 3 April 2025, Donald Trump announced the imposition of tariffs on countries globally, setting a 49% tariff on goods imported from Cambodia. This move was in response to Cambodia’s 97% share of the trade volume with the US. According to Trump’s announcement, the tariff increase was set to take effect on 9 April 2025 but was postponed for 90 days, during which a 10% tariff remains in place.
Experts attribute the tariff increase to the significant trade deficit between Cambodia and the US with Cambodia exporting over USD 9 billion to the US. When divided by the total trade value of USD 10.5 billion, this results in a 97% share, and half of that figure explains the 49% tariff rate.
Recently, the United States also increased tariffs on solar panel products imported from Cambodia by an extraordinary 3,521%.
Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet announced his intention to work diligently to negotiate with the United States regarding the 49% tariff increase. He made this announcement during a cabinet meeting on 4 April 2025.
Addressing the tariff issue, Samdech Thipadei observed that the United States has suffered considerable losses through imports from many countries, resulting in persistent trade deficits.
As a result, the Trump administration has decided to impose reciprocal tariffs on countries with which the US has significant trade deficits. In particular, Cambodia, Laos, and Viet Nam have been subjected to tariffs of 49%, 48%, and 46%, respectively, reflecting trade deficits of 97%, 95%, and 90%.
Thus, the imposition of these tariffs is not a reaction to tariffs levied by these countries on US goods, but rather a countermeasure based on the trade deficits, calculated at approximately 50% of each country’s respective deficit rate with the US.
=FRESH NEWS
