IN BRIEF
Central bank :Bt20 billion in loans approved for businesses in troubled South
The Bank of Thailand has approved loans worth Bt20 billion to 5,751 business operators in the three restive southern provinces.
Pong-adul Krisnarat, senior director of the bank's southern branch, yesterday said Bt11.6 billion had already been disbursed. The central bank has also approved loans worth Bt1.79 billion to 80 operators in Songkhla and Satun. "We are relaxing the rules to facilitate loan extension to business operators in the provinces. The new rules should be announced this month," he said.
Foreign business act :Commerce Ministry meets private sector today to mull changes to law Pramon Sutivong, chairman of the Commerce Ministry's Foreign Business Act Committee, is today holding the first meeting between ministry officials and private sector representatives to seek ideas for amendments to the law. The main focus of the panel is to recommend how the Foreign Business Act can be amended to protect local enterprises while at the same time improving foreign investor confidence, he said. The committee will spend about two months finalising suggestions for the National Legislative Assembly to consider. The meeting will cover the definition of "a foreigner" and clarify the business types under the Foreign Business Act protection list in a bid to strengthen foreign investor confidence.
Exports to the us :Washington expected to remove eleven Thai products from GSP Eleven Thai products exported to the United States are likely to be removed from the generalised system of preferences (GSP) during Washington's current annual review, Foreign Trade Department director-general Apiradi Tantraporn said yesterday. The Thai Trade Centre in Washington has reported an announcement by the US Trade Representative that 11 goods imported from Thailand now exceed GSP restrictions in terms of market share and value. Under the US's GSP regulations, the market share of imported goods must not exceed 50 per cent, while annual import value is limited to US$125 million (Bt4.59 billion). The Thai products in question have exceeded both limits during the first eight months of the year. The goods are: fresh durian, dried papaya, dried tamarind, rice flour, preserved mixed fruits, processed papaya, waste-oil products, radial tyres, untanned leather, decorative glass, and colour television sets.
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