Economic Integration, Location of Industries and Frontier Regions: Evidence from Cambodia

This paper examines changes in the location of economic activity in Cambodia between 1998 and 2008 in terms of employment growth. During this period, Cambodia joined ASEAN and increased trade with its neighbouring countries. Drawing on theoretical predictions made by New Economic Geography (NEG), we focus on frontier regions such as border areas and international port cities, and examine the changing state of manufacturing in Cambodia. Our results suggest that economic integration and concomitant trade linkages may lead to the industrial development of Cambodia’s frontier regions and metropolitan areas.