Thailand should capitalise on business opportunities emerging from the integration of the Asean, Chinese and Indian economies, especially in the automobile, electronics and hospitality industries, a senior banker said yesterday.
Vorapak Tanyawong, senior executive vice president of Siam Commercial Bank, told a Euromoney panel discussion that the country clearly has competitive advantages in these three areas.
For example, Thailand is the largest auto production hub in Asean with a combined capacity to produce 1.2 million vehicles per year.
About half of this capacity is now used to produce for markets worldwide, while the other half is aimed at the domestic market.
The extensive network of support industries has convinced global auto-makers such as Toyota, Nissan, Honda and General Motors to set up export-oriented factories here.
Anil Mehrotra, chief financial officer of General Motors Asean and Japan, told the panel that Thailand's support industries could now competitively supply parts and components to the rest of the world's auto-makers.
The Thai electronics industry also has similar competitive advantages while hospitality industries such as tourism, hotels and medical centres are internationally renowned because of the Thai service mind and good value-for-money proposition.
Vorapak said the country should exploit the new market place of Asean plus China and India by boosting efficiency and innovation in these sectors.
In January, import duties were scrapped in six Asean countries, including Thailand, while FTAs with China and India came into force.
In 2015, four more Asean countries, including Vietnam, would join the Asean free trade area.
This will eventually create a combined Asean market of 580 million consumers plus 1.3 billion consumers in China and Bt1.1 billion in India.
Both opportunities and threats are knocking.
William Heinecke, chairman and CEO of Minor Group, said the vast markets of China and India have presented huge opportunities for his group, especially in tourism and other hospitality sectors.
Yet, another panellist suggested that some domestic industries might need protection to survive |as a result of the Asean+2 framework.
Thailand's transport infrastructure, especially roads and airports, remains highly competitive and better than of that of India and China, due to continued development, he said.
"Infrastructure is a big challenge for India where roads are terrible. A lot has to be done," he said.
China also has to improve its infrastructure, he said.
At home, the fundamentals remain unchanged. What happened in April and May was "uncharacteristic", he said.
The May 19 riots and torchings of CentralWorld and other Bangkok buildings has inflicted serious |damage to Thailand's reputation |as a prime tourist destination, he said.
Citing a recent market survey, he said safety remains the top concern of 70 per cent of respondents when considering Bangkok as a travel destination.
"[Nevertheless] local residents have felt the least fear [about safety]," he said.
Bangkok is today still safer than many Chinese or Indian cities or New York, he said.
The hotel industry, battered by political violence, should recover by next quarter, he added.