The private sector is urging accelerated sales of rice stocks through government-to-government (G-to-G) deals and expansion of processed farm products to ensure export growth this year.
Business leaders have told authorities that Thai shipments could manage growth as high as 3% in the best-case scenario if the government clinches more G-to-G deals and increases exports of processed farm products, said Deputy Commerce Minister Suvit Maesincee.
Chutima Bunyapraphasara, the commerce permanent secretary, said earlier this month that the Thai government aimed to sell more than 2 million tonnes of rice this year on a G-to-G basis, with 1 million tonnes going to honour a memorandum of understanding with China.
Several buyers are interested in buying Thai rice, including Indonesia and the Philippines, because of anticipated lower supply caused by drought, said Mr Suvit.
The Commerce Ministry has set a target of 9 million tonnes of rice shipments worth US$4.78 billion this year. For 2015, Thailand was projected to ship 10 million tonnes worth $5.1 billion.
The ministry reported in late 2015 that since the May 2014 coup, a combined 8.27 million tonnes had been sold from 18.7 million left over from various rice schemes, fetching 103 billion baht.
The government sold 4.87 million tonnes via auction, earning 52.6 billion baht, while G-to-G sales tallied 3.4 million tonnes worth 50 billion baht.
Of the rest, 12 million tonnes was categorised as Grade P, which passed ministry certification and is a mix of Grades A and B, or in slightly poor condition and in need of sorting for improvement. Some 6 million tonnes was rated substandard.
According to Mr Suvit, the Commerce Ministry plans to team up with private groups to promote innovation and add value to four key farm products: rice, tapioca, rubber and oil palm.
The government's economic team has also asked the private sector to help map out strategic plans and supporting measures needed to boost export growth.
The plans should be finished and sent to the Commerce Ministry before Jan 20, the date Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak is scheduled to summon a meeting of Thai commercial counsellors and trade ministers worldwide to evaluate economic conditions in trading partners.
Meanwhile, according to Mr Suvit, the private sector has proposed setting up a joint standing committee in each market to ease trade and investment.
The private sector has asked the government to support distribution of products by small- and medium-sized enterprises, particularly in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.
The Commerce Ministry reported last month that Thai exports plunged for an 11th straight month in November, prompting the ministry to confirm that full-year shipments might fall by 5.5% instead of the 3% seen earlier.
For the first 11 months of 2015, shipment value fell by 5.51% year-on-year to $197 billion, with imports during the period falling by 11.2% to $187 billion. Thailand saw a trade surplus of $10.2 billion for the 11-month period.