Report: Cambodia vulnerable to rising oil prices

A sharp rise in the consumer price index (CPI) can be directly attributed to higher prices of gasoline, while Cambodia has been found to be extremely vulnerable to rising oil prices by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), local press reported Tuesday.

Economist Sok Sina told the Cambodia Daily that the increased cost of gasoline has raised the price of transport and subsequently pushed up the price of imports, which will affect Cambodia’s civil servants and its garment workers, two of the nation’s lowest paid groups.
In its report “Overcoming Vulnerability to Rising Oil Prices,” released on October 25, the UNDP warned that Cambodia is one of the most vulnerable nations in the Asia-Pacific region in regards to oil prices soaring on the international market.

Oil prices in Southeast Asia have tripled in the last four years, and absorbing the growing price is a staggering issue for poor Southeast Asian countries, said Hafiz Pasha, UNDP Regional Director for Asia and Pacific.

Cambodian people are suffering from high gasoline prices, which are leading to sharp rises in the cost of meat, fish and vegetables, the Khmer Machas Srok newspaper reported.

Xinhua