New trading focus sought

Thailand should develop itself into a trading hub for Asean now that it has succeeded in becoming a production base for various industries, say business leaders.

The government must also promote the development of niche and higher-quality local products to compete more effectively in world markets, they said.

The global economic crisis had forced all businesses to adapt and differentiate themselves from competitors if they want to survive, said Kan Trakulhoon, the president of Siam Cement Group.

"It is time for us to move forward to service skills improvement," he said at the Economic Outlook 2010 seminar yesterday in Bangkok.

"We are already strong in terms of production - you can see there are lots of products we can do better than others. But in the area of trading, which is a tool to deliver our high-quality goods to end users, we are not that good compared to rivals, even though it is one of the important factors that can improve our capability.

"To increase the country's competitiveness in the world trading environment, you have to be different and if you want to go this way, research and development is the answer."

He said the country had been talking about innovation for years but concrete measures from the government had yet to be seen.

"Not all business operators have enough funds to invest in research facilities. Pooling resources provided by the government is crucial. If [the government] agrees with this strategy, it needs to start doing something now before it is too late," Mr Kan said.

Prasert Bunsumpun, president and chief executive of PTT, told the seminar that political uncertainties remain the main drag on investors' confidences.

"In the time that we have spent being stuck in unresolved political problems, we could have made ourselves look better in the eyes of investors by amending outdated regulations that are obstacles to investment," he said.

Mr Prasert said he was encouraged that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is attending so many international events. "So we have a chance to explain our real situation and the measures [being taken] to keep things under control."

Both executives also agreed that the government needs to find a balance in terms of economic development, environment and people's well-being altogether.

Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said he was committed to finding an early solution acceptable to all parties in the case of the Map Ta Phut industrial estate, where a court order has suspended permits for 76 industrial projects pending clearer direction on environmental regulation.

He added that in the short term the domestic economy should bounce back strongly next year, not only because of the global economic recovery, but also because state banks were actively providing credit for small and medium operators to expand their activities.

"We set a loan budget of 1 trillion baht for the SME sector alone ... as about 95% of Thai business operators are SMEs. Their business activities will be a strong engine driving the economy," he said.