Dept schedules meet with exporters

The meeting will be chaired by Commerce Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong, and attended by Deputy Commerce Minister Siriwat Kachornprasart, exporters from various sectors, and representatives of the Board of Trade of Thailand and  Federation of Thai Industries.

Nuntawan Sakuntanaga, director-general of the department, said the meeting would focus on estimating losses among exporters and seek measures to shore up foreign trade. The flood crisis has hit many industries in more than 20 provinces, including automobiles and parts, electronics, electrical appliances, processed foods, leather goods, lifestyle and fashion goods, among others. 

Nuntawan said the meeting on November 18 was expected to come up with concrete measures to help those industries along with strategies to boost exports, as well as increase confidence among foreign traders.

It will also seek measures to solve transport problems, as many shipments have been delayed by the floods. Labour issues, including a shortage of workers and payment for those made idle by suspended operations, will also be on the agenda. The department had earlier planned to meet with flood-hit exporters in October. However, exporters and manufacturers said they wanted to concentrate on protecting their plants and machinery, so the meeting with the ministry was put off to this month.

In addition, the department has ordered 65 Thai overseas trade representatives to increase understanding among foreign traders amid export difficulties and seek raw materials to support Thai producers.

It has set up hotlines at 1169 to facilitate flood-affected exporters and 8170 to help promote export growth for small and medium-sized enterprises.