Thailand’s commercial ambassadors to boost trade and investment

Chatrudee Theparat

The government will organize urgent meeting among Thailand’s commercial ambassadors to boost trade and investment

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin ordered the Commerce Minister Phumtham Wechayachai to organize meeting among Thailand’s commercial ambassadors in Bangkok in a bid to boost trade and investment.

Government spokesman Chai Wacharonke said Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin told in the cabinet meeting (October 24 ) that the government will use the role of commercial ambassadors as a tool to drive trade and investment after his official visits to China and Saudi Arabia.

“The premier ordered Mr Phumtham to call meeting among commercial ambassadors, as well as a conducting workshop in order to plan for booting trade and investment while he also allowed the ministry to appoint additional commercial ambassadors among countries which have insufficient human resources.”

In a related development, Thai exports were valued at 25.47 billion US dollars (888.66 billion baht), reflecting a 2.1 % growth in September 2023.

Mr Keerati Rushchano, ministry of commerce’s permanent secretary said Thai exports have continued to expand for the second consecutive month, driven by the export of agricultural and agro- industrial products. Notably, fruit exports to China, such as durian and mangosteen, along with rice exports, have seen significant growth, particularly in the South African and Indonesian markets.

Furthermore, there are potential industrial export products that continue to expand, aligned with megatrends, such as solar cells and mobile phones. However, the global manufacturing sector remained in a state of contraction. The recovery of key markets also remained uneven, partly due to ongoing geopolitical risks, international conflicts, and the persistence of high-interest rates over an extended period, which has contributed to the slowing of global demand.

Thai exports in September 2023 increased by 2. 1 % to 2 5 ,4 7 billion USD while imports decreased by 8.3 % to 23,383.5 million USD, resulting in a trade surplus of 2.09 billion USD.

For the first nine months, Thai exports decreased by 3.8 % to 213.06 billion USD while imports decreased by 6 % to 218.90 billion USD, resulting in a trade deficit of 5.83 billion USD. Export products Thai exports of agricultural and agro-industrial products expanded by 12%. The agricultural products increased by 17.7 %, while the agro-industrial products bounced back to 5.4 % growth.