Phnom Penh, Sept 19 (IANS): Cambodia on Thursday set a new monthly minimum wage for the country's garment, footwear and travel goods industry at $208 for 2025, up 1.96 per cent from the current $204, Labour and Vocational Training Minister Heng Sour said.

His remarks came after the National Council for Minimum Wage voted on a monthly minimum wage of $206 for next year, which was then upped an additional $2 by Prime Minister Hun Manet, Xinhua news agency reported.

"This new minimum wage for garment, footwear and travel goods factory workers will take effect from January 1, 2025 onwards," Heng Sour said.

Besides the monthly minimum wage, the workers will also receive other monthly fringe benefits, including an extra $10 per month for regular attendance and an extra $7 per month for transportation and rent, he added.

The garment, footwear and travel goods sector, the kingdom's largest foreign currency earner, consists of about 1,538 factories and branches with approximately 913,000 workers, according to the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training.

The Southeast Asian nation exported these products worth $6.24 billion during the January-June period of 2024, up 16.4 per cent from $5.36 billion over the same period last year, according to the General Department of Customs and Excise.