Illustrative image (Source: AFP/VNA)Bangkok (VNA) – The Thaigovernment has pledged to give new measures to spur exports and promoteinvestment either later this month or early next month.
Local media on August 19 quoted KobsakPootrakool, deputy secretary-general for political affairs to Prime MinisterPrayut Chan-o-cha, as saying that the next meeting of the economic ministers willfocus on measures to promote exports and investment.
The government aims to stimulateexports to grow by 3 percent in the second half of this year, with next year'sgrowth set at 3.5 percent, he said.
But, he said that the entire year'sexport figures are highly likely to decline.
Thailand's exports dropped for thefourth straight month in June, attributed to weak global demand because of theglobal economic slowdown, ongoing trade tensions between the US and China, andlower oil prices.
The Commerce Ministry reported thatcustoms-cleared outbound shipments remained in the red, down 2.2 percentyear-on-year in June to 21.4 billion USD after contracting by 5.8 percent inMay, 2.6 percent in April and 4.9 percent in March.
Exports to most markets continued toebb, with shipments to China falling 14.9 percent in June from a year earlier,while those to the US were down 2.1 percent.
For the first six months, overallshipments dipped 2.9 percent from the same period last year to 113 billion USD.
Kobsak said the stimulus measures arelikely to include closer cooperation between state agencies and the privatesector to drive the shipments of product items that are subject to highertariffs both in the US and China.
The government will also support andpromote entrepreneurs affected by the trade war to sell their products at homeand other markets while helping cut the costs of exporters.
In the first half this year, threeitems that saw export expansion both in the US and China market were leatherproducts, shoes and wooden products.-VNA
VNA
