Shrimp industry fears big blow from EU move
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Tariff change could hit many workers and growers
The loss of trade privileges for Thai shrimp exported to the European Union will affect growers and employees of related businesses – about 2 million people all up.
Somsak Paneetatyasa, president of the Thai Shrimp Association, said late last week that the tariff on Thai shrimp imported by the EU under the GSP would rise from 4.2 per cent to 12 per cent, as the Kingdom would now have to pay the full rate.
The rate on cooked shrimp and shrimp cocktail would rise from 7 to 20 per cent.
“The high import tariff will directly affect Thai shrimp exports, as our competitors such as Malaysia have already formed bilateral free-trade agreements with the EU to enjoy tariff-free access,” said Somsak.
Somsak stressed that the government should find a way to strengthen the Kingdom’s export competitiveness. He predicted the new import tariff rate would reduce the Thai share of the EU shrimp market from 20-25 per cent to only 5 per cent.
“We want to see the government holds talks with the EU to encourage it to lower the import tariff on Thai shrimp from the full charge,” Somsak said.
During the first four months of this year, the country’s shrimp exports dropped by 10 per cent to 103,533 tonnes, and by 3 per cent to Bt27.39 billion in value terms, the association reported.
The shrimp industry involves more than 2 million people. With-out any assistance measures, they would be badly affected, the group said.
