WTO-based MFN rule used for Thailand's exports of non-quota goods to Europe

BANGKOK, March 27 (TNA) - The Trade Policy and Strategy Office (TPSO), under the Ministry of Commerce, says that Thailand will refer to the rule of most favored nation (MFN) obliged by member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) when trading with Britain and the European Union (EU) on non-quota goods. TPSO Director-General Pimchanok Vonkorpon told journalists of the policy on March 26, saying that the WTO-based MFN rule will be referred to for the so-called "general goods" until free trade agreements (FTAs) between Thailand and Britain and Thailand and EU, if successfully concluded, become effective in the future. The MFN rule requires trading partners to reciprocally provide equal trade advantages to each other, including low tariffs or high import quotas. The TPSO chief, thus, proposed that Thai authorities speed up negotiating and concluding FTAs with both the EU and Britain for the maximum national benefit, especially for the Thai private sector, as the latter will "exit" from the EU (Brexit) in the coming months. Besides, Thailand's FTAs with both the EU and Britain will enable the country's exporters to continue to ship their products to the British market through Dutch and French ports as similar free trade regulations will be implemented. Based on official statistics, Thailand's exports to Britain and the EU account for about 1.6 per cent and 8.3 per cent of the country's total annual export respectively. According to the TPSO chief, Britain is Thailand's third largest importing market in the EU trade bloc, after Germany and the Netherlands, but Britain is a most significant consumer market for Thai exporters. (TNA)