Senator Nantana Nantavaropas is urging the Commerce Ministry to support SMEs affected by e-commerce platforms selling cheap, low-quality goods to Thai consumers.
During yesterday's Senate meeting, Sen Nantana raised concerns with the Commerce Minister regarding the overwhelming influence of multinational e-commerce platforms on local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Thailand.
She highlighted the rapid growth of platforms like Temu, which offer a wide array of products at extremely low prices by eliminating the need for middlemen.
The senator pointed out that while consumers may enjoy lower prices, they get very low-quality products in return.
The products could be unsafe, contaminated or nearly expired and will subsequently become waste, she said.
Sen Nantana noted that Thai merchants have been severely affected as more consumers order products directly from Chinese manufacturers through such a platform, leading to Thailand's growing trade deficit with China.
According to her, imports from China during the first half of this year surged by over 1.33 trillion baht, or 7.12%, compared to the same period of last year, exacerbating the trade deficit by 15.66%.
Sen Nantana asked what measures Commerce Minister Pichai Naripthaphan would implement to combat the dominance of transnational e-commerce and the influx of low-quality goods that are harmful to consumers.
She also questioned how the ministry would support the compensation of the affected SMEs and end the trade deficit with China.
She asked if the government would work with the other Asean countries to deal with this matter.
Mr Pichai acknowledged Sen Nantanas' concerns, saying he had discussed the issue with the Chinese Ambassador to Thailand on Thursday.
He said the Chinese Ambassador said China was willing to comply with Thailand's import regulations and he himself wouldn't allow sales of imported goods that do not meet standards.
He added that China has also confirmed it would invest more in Thailand.
Regarding support to the SME sector, Mr Pichai said more collaboration is needed.
He added that the Finance Ministry and the Bank of Thailand (BoT) must cooperate to address the matter, suggesting the BoT should help reduce SMEs' debts by cutting down interest rates.
The minister said the setback had been when Covid-19 struck.