ID :
383438
Tue, 10/13/2015 - 11:01
Auther :

Thai government urged to join TPP

BANGKOK, October 13 (TNA) - Experts have urged the Thai government to quickly join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement to boost Thai exports and national competitiveness. Duenden Nikomborirak, Research Director of Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), suggested during her speech in Bangkok on October 12 that Thailand's quickly joining TPP would also prevent the Thai economy from negative impacts for being an outsider of the newly-formed trade bloc, comprising 12 Pacific Rim countries. Duenden pointed out that TPP, which was firstly established by the United States, Canada and Mexico, now has a combined trade value equivalent to 40 per cent of Thailand’s total trade value and 45 per cent of the country’s total foreign direct investment (FDI). According to the senior researcher, joining TPP as a member economy would bring benefits to Thailand more than the Kingdom's inking free trade agreements (FTAs) with the rest of TPP nine member countries. The TDRI research director cited as an example that TPP members enjoy a tariff cut on textile and garment products, while Thailand still imposes a 20 per cent import tariff on the goods. Besides, as TPP will gradually become a zero-per cent tariff trade bloc over the next three decades, quickly joining TPP will enable Thailand to expand international trade and have an easy access to oversea markets for exports in the long run. Nopporn Thepsitthar, Chairman of the Thai National Shippers' Council, cautioned that Thailand would lose national competitiveness by not being a TPP member, as the United States now plans to import more products from Vietnam, including textiles, electronics and vehicles which are now among major Thai exports to the US market, which could then trim Thailand's gross domestic product (GDP) by 0.6 per cent. TPP now groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, United States, Vietnam. (TNA)

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