S'pore, Thailand to lead ASEAN road shows
S'pore, Thailand to lead ASEAN road shows
SINGAPORE (Agencies): Singapore will lead a delegation of officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in an investment mission to the United States, the government said on Thursday.
Minister for Trade and Industry George Yeo will head the ASEAN ministerial investment mission from May 15 to 20, which will meet with U.S. businessmen in New York, Minneapolis and San Francisco, the Ministry of Trade and Industry said.
The U.S. business community will be updated on the region's economic recovery from the financial crisis that erupted in 1997 and on investment-related issues, it said.
The visit is the second of its kind this year, following a similar visit to Japan led by Malaysian Minister for International Trade and Industry Rafidah Aziz in February, AFP reported.
Meanwhile, DPA reported, Thailand will lead a road show to Britain, France and Germany later this month to raise investment interest in the recovering markets of Southeast Asia, a senior official said on Thursday.
Thailand's Minister to the Prime Minister's Office Abhisit Vejjajiva will lead the delegation of officials and businessmen from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to London, Paris and Munich on May 22-26.
"ASEAN has to go to tell people that their market is a large consumer population, with a gross domestic product equivalent to China's, although the population is about one third China's at 500 million," said Board of Investment (BOI) Secretary General Staporn Kavitanom.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar (Burma), the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The road shows have been timed to draw attention to the regional recovery and to highlight progress made in establishing an ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), said Staporn.
As of Jan. 1, this year, the six most developed countries of ASEAN had slashed tariffs to less than 5 percent on 85 percent of all import items sourced from the region.
"We have to admit that ASEAN has to become one market to become competitive, or else we don't offer a sizable market to investors," said Staporn, who will lead Thailand's delegation to Europe.
He acknowledged that Malaysia's recent refusal to slash tariffs on automobiles and parts and components was a set back for AFTA, not to mention Thailand
Staporn claimed Thailand stood to gain within ASEAN as the main regional production hub for automobiles and "white goods," or electrical appliances such as washing machines, air conditioners and microwave ovens.
Staporn said that many of Thailand's industries, such as petrochemicals, had recovered from the crisis years of 1997-98, and the country was beginning to attract foreign investments again.