PHNOM PENH — Cambodia and China signed a memorandum of understanding on e-commerce cooperation here on Friday, with the aim of assisting Cambodia to develop its online business operations.

The deal was inked between Cambodian Commerce Ministry Secretary of State Kem Sithan and Chinese Vice-Minister of Commerce Wang Bingnan in Phnom Penh.

"Under the memorandum, China and Cambodia will step up e-commerce cooperation such as policy communication, business cooperation, capacity building, personnel training and joint research under the comprehensive strategic partnership, especially under the Belt and Road Initiative," Wang said.

China is currently Cambodia's largest trading partner and investor, he said, adding that the economies of the two countries are "highly complementary".

Trade volume between China and Cambodia was expected to hit $5 billion in 2017, and the e-commerce cooperation was crucial to further increase the trade volume between the two countries in the future, he added.

E-commerce refers to the purchase of goods and services via online system, which would bring a lot of new business opportunities for young entrepreneurs in Cambodia and undoubtedly contribute to its national economic growth.

"China's assistance will be very helpful to the development of e-commerce in Cambodia," Kem Sithan said.

Cambodian Commerce Ministry Under-secretary of State Sok Sopheak said online business operations in Cambodia have grown rapidly in recent years thanks to the increasing numbers of internet users. However, the Southeast Asian nation has not yet had a law on e-commerce.

"The draft law is being reviewed by the legal experts of the Council of Ministers, and is expected to be sent to the National Assembly for approval next year," he said.

According to the figures of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, over 8 million of Cambodia's 15 million people have now access to the internet, most of which get online via smart phones.