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B2B Asia News
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This is a B2B Asia News Daily Update for 7 May 2026, reviewing regional and global markets, and covering the daily business news you shouldn’t miss.
Watch the video in English above.
- We start with a quick look at regional markets. Asian stocks soared to record highs on Thursday while the U.S. dollar slipped and oil nursed steep losses on the prospects of a U.S.-Iran peace deal, even as the fate of the critical Strait of Hormuz appeared unresolved.
- Japan's Nikkei returned from a long holiday to cross 62,000 for the first time, catching up on a blistering AI-led rally after robust earnings that also catapulted South Korean and Taiwan stocks to records.
- MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1%, hitting a record high.
- Zooming in on Cambodia’s market—the Cambodia Securities Exchange Index was down 0.53 points or 0.12% to 424.24.
- Total trade volume was down with 175,931 shares changing hands at a total value of 1.03 billion riel or nearly $257,000 US dollars.
- On the main board, only one stock, CAMGSM, was up, while six stocks were down, with Pestech Cambodia as the biggest loser of the day.
- Over on the growth board, DBD Engineering and Picasso City Garden were up while JS Land stayed flat.
- Shifting to the exchange rate, the Khmer riel to USD weakened slightly to 4,011 riel per US Dollar, while the US Dollar index hovered around 97.90.
- Turning to global commodities, oil prices rose over $1 dollar on Thursday, as investors weighed the prospects of a Middle East peace deal succeeding. Brent crude futures were up 0.5% at $101.81 US dollars a barrel.
- U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 0.5% to $95.53 US dollars a barrel. (0615 GMT)
- Gold prices rose for a third consecutive session on Thursday, supported by a softer dollar as hopes of a U.S.-Iran deal eased concerns over inflation and prolonged high interest rates.
- Spot gold was up 1% at $4,738.86 US dollars per ounce, after rising about 3% on Wednesday to hit its highest point since April 27.
- U.S. gold futures for June delivery rose 1.2% to $4,748.50 US dollars. (0728 GMT)
- Looking at the crypto market, Bitcoin traded within the $80,500 to $83,750 US dollar range, showing a strong bullish trend and testing key resistance levels near $84,000 US dollars.
- Moving on now to other business-related news:
- The Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) has approved 184 fixed-asset investment projects with a combined capital of approximately $2.6 billion US dollars in the first four months of this year. The figures were shared by H.E. Sun Chanthol, Deputy Prime Minister and First Vice Chairman of the CDC, during the Cambodia Investment Forum 2026 held at the Shangri-La Phnom Penh on May 7. The Deputy Prime Minister highlighted that this significant capital inflow underscores rising investor confidence in the Kingdom’s economic stability and favourable business climate.
- Sunway Medical Centre, part of Malaysia’s Sunway Healthcare Group, and Intercare Hospital signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen healthcare services in Cambodia on May 7. The agreement was signed by the Vice Chairperson of Canadia Integrated Group and CEO of Intercare Hospital, and the Managing Director of Sunway Healthcare Group, in the presence of the Malaysian Ambassador of Cambodia. The partnership will focus on key specialties including Pediatrics, Orthopedics, Oncology, Eye Care, and Laboratory services, with an emphasis on improving patient pathways between Cambodia and Malaysia.
- Cambodia’s small business lending sector recorded moderate growth in outstanding loan balances during the first quarter of 2026, according to a report released by Credit Bureau Cambodia on May 7. The report showed that total outstanding small business loan balances rose by 0.9 percent quarter-on-quarter to reach $37.44 billion US dollars by the end of March 2026. The total number of loan accounts declined by 1.5 percent to around 1.74 million accounts nationwide. Furthermore, working capital loans continued to dominate the market, accounting for 51.6 percent of total loan accounts and 64.6 percent of outstanding balances.
Watch the 7 May 2026 Daily Update in Khmer below: