MTBC urges more Malaysia-Thailand trade, investment

BANGKOK, July 13 (TNA) - The Malaysia-Thailand Business Council (MTBC), which has been established since early 2013, has urged more bilateral trade and investment between the two neighbouring countries in the ASEAN Community (AC). MTBC Chairman Wirat Uanarumit raised the issue on Wednesday, saying that Malaysia is now Thailand's largest trading partner in AC and 4th largest on the global market with two-way trade totaling 24.84 billion US dollars annually on average over the past five years (2011-2015) and border trade alone in 2015 accounting for 14.72 billion US dollars, out of total bilateral trade of 22.11 billion US dollars. Wirat pointed out that Thailand's exports to Malaysia stood at 7.58 billion US dollars last year, while imports totaled 7.14 billion US dollars, resulting in a trade surplus of 434.52 million US dollars in favour of the Thai economy, with major Thai exports to Malaysia including rubber products, tyres and accessories, computers and accessories and processed wood, while major imports including computers, visual-audio recorders and industrial machines. Wirat also acknowledged that Malaysian tourist arrivals in Thailand rank number two, after those from China. Besides, Malaysia has had sound business and diplomatic relations with countries in the Middle East and Africa and is now a largest production base of halal food products for global Muslims and processed rubber products. The MTBC chief, thus, suggested that Thai business oprators expand their trade and investment with the Malaysian counterparts in order to also connect with more markets in the Middle East and Africa, apart from focusing on neighbouring Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, known in short as CLMV, in AC. Echoing similar views, Thai Ambassador to Malaysia Damrong Kraikruan noted, meanwhile, that the Malaysian economy has expanded well by about 4.5 per cent annually and is the world's largest exporter of condoms. According to the top Thai envoy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's exports of hand gloves also account for 62 per cent of global exports of the product, while the neighbouring country's production capacity for natural rubber is only one million tonnes yearly, far short of its demand, and needs to import raw latex from Thailand. Besides, it is a good opportunity for Thai business operators to export raw materials of halal food products, namely chicken, to Malaysia, as most of its halal food products rely on imported raw materials and Malaysia people each consume as high as about 55 kilogrammes of chicken annually, while other Thai food products are also popular among the Malaysian consumers. (TNA)