Bilateral trade between the UK and Thailand has increased this year from the same period 2009, showing resilience to the political crisis, said Steve Buckley, director of trade and investment at the British Embassy in Bangkok.
He also outlined the possibility of further propping up the bilateral trade through some changes involving the Board of Investment (BoI).
Buckley suggested the BOI review the privilege packages to be more competitive in attracting UK investors, establish a BOI office in London, and transfer control of BOI operations to the Prime Minister's Office. This would send a strong message that foreign investment is such an important issue that the prime minister will oversee it directly.
He noted that UK investors were looking to establish a new presence in Asia, including China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Singapore, as well as Thailand. Given such a broad range of choices, the BOI should review whether the privilege packages were sufficiently competitive.
He said Thailand had strong facilities and other essential conditions such as medical services and a good education system, as there were many international schools with high standards here. But UK investors had to consider many factors in gaining the highest benefit from investment in one country. Therefore, if the promotion packages Thailand offered to foreign investors were more competitive, it would be to the advantage of the country.
"Some countries allow foreign investors to buy property. This is an advantage," he said.
"If the BOI thinks that the privileges it gives to foreign investors are enough and it can achieve its target in attracting foreign investment each year, it may not need to revise the packages. But if it is not, I think that it will be better to adjust the promotion packages at this time."
Buckley said the existing UK businesses in Thailand had no plan to move out of the country, while the potential newcomers were watching closely to see how the political situation improved before deciding to invest here.
Despite the recent political violence, the trade value between the two countries over the first five months of this year rose from the same period of last year. That means the riots had no impact on bilateral trade, he said.
The value of imports from the UK to Thailand during the first five months of this year was £385 million (Bt19.4 billion), an increase of 50 per cent from the same period last year, while the value from exports to the UK was £980 million, rising by 17 per cent. The depreciation in the sterling currency was a factor boosting trade between the two countries.
Buckley said the figures showed the strong business relationship between the UK and Thailand. But although the UK is the largest European investor group in Thailand, the BOI does not have an office in London. He said establishing such an office in the British capital could be a symbol of the tight relationship between the two countries.