The World Bank expects Cambodia’s economy to grow 7.2 percent this year, driven primarily by expansion of the country’s garment and tourism sectors, a slight slowdown from 2013, when growth reached a six-year high of 7.4 percent.
In its semi-annual East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, released Monday, the World Bank also predicts gross domestic product (GDP) growth to drop to 7 percent in 2015.
The estimates for 2013 and 2014 are an increase from the bank’s report in October that projected both years at 7 percent.
Monday’s report states potential risks for this year and next year include Cambodia’s political uncertainty, labor unrest, China’s economic slowdown and the price of commodities such as rice.
The World Bank’s predictions differ slightly from an economic outlook report released last week by the Asian Development Bank. The ADB predicted Cambodia’s GDP growth at 7 percent for 2014, a dip from its prediction of 7.5 percent in October.
The ADB report cites political uncertainty since July’s disputed national election and labor unrest in the garment industry for the downward revision of its growth prediction.
