Tafta has boosted investment from Down Under
The implementation of the Thai-Australian Free-Trade Agreement (Tafta) in January of last year has not only boosted trade in goods, but also investment from Down Under.
The trade pact cut import tariffs in both countries, but also reduced barriers to cross-border investments. One company to take advantage of those rules is the Western Australia division of Sea-Slip Marinas, which has tossed its hat in the ring for a bid to build boat pens in Phuket, according to the Western Australia Business News.The newspaper reported that the contract for providing marina pontoons could be worth 500,000 Australian dollars (Bt14.4 million). The marina developer was asked to bid on a contract to build 100 boat pens at the Phuket Boat Lagoon following the installation of a 30-metre sample pontoon for the marina last year. Tafta is a major reason the company targeted Thailand, says Jim Scott, manager of Sea-Slip's Western Australia division. "If it wasn't for the Tafta we wouldn't have been able to compete," he told the Western Australia Business News. "The duty on our product was 40 per cent pre-Tafta, but now it is at zero per cent." According to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Western Australia, the free-trade agreement eliminated more than half of Thailand's 5,000 tariffs - affecting nearly 80 per cent of Australian exports - since its inception at the beginning of last year. Thailand is now Australia's 10th-largest trading partner, according to the chamber. The Kingdom imported US$3.7 billion (Bt144 billion) worth of Australian goods last year, while exports reached $3.15 billion, resulting in a $519-million trade surplus with Australia, according to the Commerce Ministry. Scott said that Sea-Slip was up against three competing developers from the United States, the United Kingdom and France for the Phuket bid. "There is potential for Australian marina developers in Thailand, now that Australian products enter tariff-free and more marinas are being built," he told Western Australia Business News. Scott added that the company also offered marine management training in Thailand. "Asian companies don't have this type of training," the paper quoted him as saying. "We will supply training and provide assistance on mariners in Thailand." The company may consider setting up an office in Thailand next year if it wins the contract. The Nation
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