Thailand to fight foreign retailers

Thailand to fight foreign retailers

Bangkok said Wednesday it would set up an advocacy body to help
Thai retailers resist fierce competition from foreign superstores
that now control 40 percent of the local market.

"The cabinet approved 395 million baht (US$9.2 million) over
three years to set up a public enterprise to help Thai retail
traders," it said in a statement, adding the body could be
privatized within five years.

The commerce ministry proposes setting up branches of the
organization in each of Thailand's 76 provinces, to oversee goods
storage, purchasing, bargaining, financing, and the development
of locally made products.

The products would include those promoted under the
government's "one village, one product" initiative, which
encourages each Thai village to specialize in the production of a
particular item.

The ministry expects around 100,000 retail traders to join the
project, in order to boost their ability to compete with the
giant foreign retail stores that have proliferated in Thailand in
recent years.

"Some 90 percent of Thai retail traders still run as family-
style operations, but they are now seriously suffering from price
competition from big retailers, who control 40 percent of the
retail market," the statement said.

Meanwhile, the Nation newspaper reported research by the
Thailand Research Fund found 50,000 traditional retail stores
could be forced to close if they fail to adjust to compete
against the foreign giants. -- AFP