Korn says govt seeks Chinese investment in Thai railways

Korn said the government would invite China to invest in mega-projects, particularly railways. The bilateral meeting in Phuket will serve as a preparation for Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's trip to China, said Korn.

Korn chairs what was to be a meeting of the finance ministers of Asean plus China, South Korea and Japan this weekend.

However, Japan did not send its minister as it is in the process of appointing a new one. Korn said it would not affect the discussion since there was no agreement to be signed.

Asked about Singapore's position on currency-swap arrangements, Korn said he wanted to exchange ideas with everyone about enlarging the size of the emergency credit line known as the Chiang Mai Initiative. News reports suggested that Singapore did not want to contribute much money to this.

Korn, however, said the region had plenty of official reserves a decade after the 1997 Asian financial crisis, so that it was appropriate to review the size of the credit pool.

The Chiang Mai Initiative was set up after 1997 by Asean plus China, Japan and South Korea to provide emergency credit to members facing severe capital outflows. It is a bilateral agreement with a combined credit line worth about US$80 billion (Bt2.9 trillion). Now participating countries plan to transform the bilateral agreement into a multilateral one, similar to the International Monetary Fund.