Cambodia deputy PM says 19% US tariff rate averts collapse of its garments manufacturing sector

FILE PHOTO: Garment workers walk out of their factory during their lunch break in Phnom Penh on July 8, 2025. Cambodia's deputy prime minister said the country has close to one million workers in the garment sector, mainly women, each one supporting four to five members of their family. - AFP

PHNOM PENH: A tariff rate of 19 per cent on Cambodia's exports to the United States has helped it avert the collapse of its vital garment and footwear sector, allowing the country to remain competitive with its peers, its deputy prime minister told Reuters on Friday (Aug 1).

Sun Chanthol, Cambodia's top trade negotiator, thanked US President Donald Trump for his understanding in Cambodia's negotiations to reduce a tariff rate that had initially been set at 49 per cent hen later 36 per cent - among the world's highest levies - and for his intervention in a deadly conflict between Thailand and Cambodia.