Protectionism rising because of slowdown
The Commerce Ministry has urged Thai enterprises to prepare to battle rising numbers of trade barriers imposed by many countries amid the global economic slowdown, which has encouraged many countries to protect their markets.
Surasak Riangkrua, deputy director-general of the Foreign Trade Department, said the euro financial crunch and the slowing recovery in the United States had caused a rise in the number of non-tariff barriers (NTBs).
"Thailand’s exports could be impacted by the measures imposed by many countries that want to reduce trade deficits and protect domestic manufacturers," he said, adding that Thai manufacturers should be urgently aware and adapt themselves with fast-changing measures so that they can ensure market penetration to target export markets.
Those barriers are imposed by both developed nations and developing countries.
The European countries and the United States have imposed many new NTBs amid slowing economic growth this year. The EU recently announced new regulations on food safety by requiring manufacturers to carry the letter "L" on each lot to facilitate the tracing process if any dispute or harm to consumers arises. The EU also requires garment manufacturers to issue a clear code for raw materials from third countries in order to clarify source of origin clearly for consumers.
Sweden has forbidden the use of poly-carbonate substances for food packaging for children aged below three years.
The US has imposed a measure to call on every producer to label electrical products, and control the usage of phosphate substances in cleaning products. In Maryland state, it has limited the use of lead substances in water pipelines.
Moreover, Mexico is proposing a draft law to limit distribution of energy drinks that have caffeine in them. Argentina limits the use of lead substances in ink. Food exporters to Brazil need to label clearly whether their products contain animal compounds.
Chile and Colombia have imposed emissions standards for pick-up trucks. The customs union of Central America has called on food processors to get import certification. Russia has limited use of malt to only 20 per cent in beer production.
Asian countries have also imposed stringent import control measures. For instance, China has stringent inspection of bird’s nest imports. South Korea has stringent regulations for cosmetics imports, while Japan has stringent safety measures for automobile products.
In Asean, Indonesia has limited the volume of fruits and vegetable imports in some ports. Vietnam limits the quantity of wine, spirits, cosmetics and mobile-phone imports.
