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Published on February 7, 2008

Among the newly appointed ministers, Commerce Minister Mingkwan Sang-suwan and Industry Minister Suwit Khunkitti will find it necessary to start their work immediately.

Departments under their ministries are preparing urgent measures for their approval.

The new measures range from environmental taxes to policies for reaching export growth targets and maintaining local product prices.

At the Industry Ministry, Suwit will need to consider the enforcement of the online pollution-monitoring (OPM) system and emission charges as proposed by the Industrial Works Department.

Department director-general Ratchada Singalavanija said the OPM system would be enforced on plants releasing more than 500 cubic metres per day of wastewater. It has targeted 300 plants for installation of the system this year. The targeted industries are paper, tanning and food and beverages.

From now on, all new plants must install this system or else be liable to a fine of between Bt20,000 and Bt400,000. He said the price of the technology was about Bt1 million, which is much cheaper than in the past.

Suwit's approval is also sought for the imposition of environmental taxes. In the beginning, the department plans to collect emission charges for wastewater release from some targeted industries. At a later stage, air-polluting industries will also face environmental taxes.

At the Commerce Ministry, Mingkwan and two deputy ministers - Viroon Tejapaiboon and Banyin Tangpakorn - will meet senior officials of the ministry in the afternoon today. They will consider the proposed plans of each department, concentrating on export promotion and supervision of price rises for consumer goods.

Internal Trade Department director-general Yangyong Phuangrach said the department would consider any price rises for goods based on market mechanisms. A plan to manipulate consumer-goods prices will set aside some specific products in certain sectors and allow prices to change based on the movement of the world's market prices.

These include dairy products, vegetable oil, coffee and steel. If the world price rises within a month, the price of those goods may be ap-proved for an increase, while the price must decrease after the world price goes down.

Next, the department is considering setting up a central market for specific agricultural goods, in order to ensure fair prices to farmers and consumers alike.

Finally, it will try to encourage enforcement of the Retail Business Act, so as to manage retail and wholesales businesses under the same regulations.

Countering the effects of the strengthening baht upon Thailand's export growth, the Department of Export Promotion (DEP) will today propose 10 priority strategies to Mingkwan designed to ensure that exports grow 10-12.5 per cent to US$170 billion (Bt5.59 trillion), as planned.

"The plans should boost

the efficiency of the exporters and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and en-sure that the country achieves its export target despite fac-ing many negative factors,"

said DEP director-general Rachane Potjanasuntorn.

The Internal Trade Depart-ment today will propose plans to systemise consumer-goods prices, stabilise agricultural prices, promote enforcement

of the Trade Act and support approval of the Retail and Wholesale Business Act.

The ministry's export-growth target is based on an average baht value of 33.50 to the US dollar, but the Thai currency recently passed the Bt33 level, due to the weakening dollar on the back of the US economic slowdown.

The 10 strategies designed to lift exports include promoting them to new potential markets, particularly China, India, the Middle East, Russia and Eastern Europe. Exports to new markets will increase to 49.1 per cent of total exports, from 46.6 per cent last year. Exports to traditional markets like the US, Japan and the EU will decrease to 50.9 per cent, from 53.4 per cent last year. The DEP would set up 36 Thai exhibitions abroad and participate in 52 foreign trade fairs.

SMEs will be encouraged to start exporting goods and services, especially hotels, restaurants, spas, tailors, garage and construction services and even Thai boxing. The goal is to promote another 2,100 new international entrepreneurs this year.

Petchanet Pratruangkrai, Chalida Ekvitthayavechnukul

The Nation