China has pledged to buy more rubber and rice from Thailand this year, while Thailand wants China to speed up inspecting production of Thai-made red edible bird's nests and rice.
Thailand also asked China to rev up certifying geographical identification (GI) registration applications for three Thai indigenous products: Thung Kula Rong Hai jasmine rice, Siam ruby grapefruit from the Pak Phanang district of Nakhon Sri Thammarat, and sweet tamarind from Phetchabun.
A GI is a distinctive symbol used to identify a product as originating in the territory of a particular country, region or locality where its quality, reputation or other characteristics are linked to the place of origin.
GI certification reflects the unique characteristics and quality of the product, which boosts market value in developed countries.
According to Deputy Commerce Minister Chutima Bunyaphasara, who yesterday met Gao Yan, China's vice-minister of commerce, Chinese officials have pledged to buy more rubber and rice this year.
In December 2015, China and Thailand signed rice and rubber purchase deals as part of the Thai-Sino railway development agreement.
The Commerce Ministry signed a deal to sell 1 million tonnes of rice to the China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation, a Chinese state-owned food conglomerate.
The Rubber Authority of Thailand, meanwhile, signed a deal to sell 200,000 tonnes of rubber to Sinochem, a conglomerate representing the Chinese government.
But China has imported only 40,000 tonnes of rubber and 400,000 tonnes of rice under the 2015 deal.
China is currently Thailand's No.1 trading partner, with two-way trade between China and Thailand totalling US$65.8 billion (2.1 trillion baht) in 2016.
For the first 11 months of 2017, two-way trade amounted to $67 billion, with key export products from Thailand including rubber, plastic pellets, computers and parts, chemicals, wood and wooden products, and tapioca.
China imported $2.674 billion worth of Thai rubber in the first 11 months of 2017, up 46.9%. The import value of rubber products was worth $2.65 billion, up 340% year-on-year. Rice imports were worth $639 million for the same period, up 15.8%.
According to Ms Chutima, further details are to become available at the sixth session of the China-Thailand Joint Committee on Trade, Investment and Economy, which may take place in the first quarter in Bangkok.
Ms Chutima said the committee meeting will centre on strategic partnerships, particularly on the possible connectivity between Thailand's Eastern Economic Corridor and the China-hosted Belt and Road initiative, and between the EEC and China's Pan Pearl River Delta (PPRD) and Greater Bay Area (GBA).
The PPRD involves cooperation among nine Chinese provincial regions, along with Hong Kong and Macau, while the GBA is the Chinese government's scheme to link the cities of Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Zhongshan, Dongguan, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing into an integrated economic and business hub.
Ms Chutima said Thailand is willing to function as the gateway that links China's economy to Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.