Commerce to submit modified version of draft retail bill to the Cabinet

Permanent secretary Yanyong Phuangrach said the ministry would use a modified version of the original draft so that it will be easily passed by the Cabinet and submitted for Parliament's approval in a short period.
Thailand has tried to pass a retail bill for almost a decade. However, no draft act has ever been approved because of the long process of adjustment and disagreements among involved sectors.
Yanyong said the ministry was eager to get the act passed this time to ensure that Thailand will have a law in place to regulate retail and wholesale business after |the country comes under |the Asean Economic Community.
“Although it is quite late, the act should help control the fast expansion of hypermarkets in city centres. It should also help protect small traditional retailers as large modern trade will be obliged to operate far from the city centres,” he said.
The current draft act has been combined with a draft from the Thai Trade Representative Office and with suggestions from the private sector. It should create fair rules and be accepted by all concerned, including modern and small retailers as well as consumers, he said.
The draft defines four major business categories for regulation: hypermarkets and superstores; discount stores; supermarkets; and convenience stores with combined annual revenue of more than Bt1 billion.
Some store brands that would fall into these categories are Tesco Lotus, Big C Supercenter, Makro, Tops Supermarket, 7-Eleven and Lotus Express. Hypermarkets and superstores, discount stores and supermarkets will have to be a minimum distance – between 5 and 10 kilometres, to be finalised later – from a municipal centre. They will also have to limit operating hours, possibly to 12 hours a day.
To increase fair practice for enterprises, the government also plans to include state-owned businesses under the Trade Competition Act. This is aimed at preventing market dominance.
The amendment plan arose after complaints that TOT, a state-owned telecommunication company, and some government-owned banks have special privileges. However, some state-owned enterprises such as Thai Airways International may not agree with the amendment, as the company has cited that it has high operating costs and must support government activities.