• 
• 

Published on December 22, 2007

The Foreign Trade Department reported that requested imports under Jtepa totalled only 860 tonnes of steel worth US$500,000 (Bt16.83 million) out of a quota of 150,000 tonnes.

Director-general Apiradi Tantraporn said only importers of hot steel sheet for the automotive industry had asked for their quota allotment.

Meanwhile, exporters in other sectors, particularly food, have expressed great interest in obtaining benefits under the free-trade deal, which took effect on November 1.

The department reported that requests for export certification reached 7,000 forms within a month of Jtepa's implementation. These were for products worth $323 million.

Products with the highest demand for export to Japan were bananas (1,667 tonnes), pork (500 tonnes) and pineapples (42 tonnes).

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

 The Nation