More European car makers likely to move to Thailand

BANGKOK, August 27 (TNA) - The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) says that a few more European car makers are relocating to Thailand, where there are strong and relatively advanced technologies for auto part manufacturing in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). FTI chairman Payungsak Chartsutipol acknowledged, at a discussion on the ASEAN Community organized by the Economic Reporters Association in Bangkok on Monday, that the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by 2015 with 600 million consumers, has also attracted a few more European car manufacturers to establish their production bases in Thailand, including a truck maker which expects the ASEAN economic growth to greatly increase cargo transportation in the region. According to the FTI chief, latest figures showed that Thailand's automobile production should reach as many as 2.3 million units this year, higher than 2.2 million units as earlier targeted and a new high of the country's automobile production. The FTI chief said that from January-July 2012, Thailand had produced a total of 1.27 million units of automobiles, a 32.63 per cent year-on-year surge. Meanwhile, Bangkok Bank Chairman Kosit Panpiumrat assessed that the ongoing eurozone debt crisis should cause a world economic slowdown next year and investment and lending by financial institutes in Thailand should also drop consequently, urging the government to more focus on education improvement and human resource development, which has been equivalent to only 0.18 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), in order to produce more skilled workforces to boost national competitiveness. (TNA)