FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

FTI wants car-exchange scheme to be restricted to locally made autos

FTI wants car-exchange scheme to be restricted to locally made autos

The government’s car-exchange scheme should be limited to domestically produced cars in order to truly boost the domestic economy, the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) suggested.

“The private sector agrees that this scheme will help boost the country’s economy, but only if there are criteria stipulating that cars under the scheme must be domestically produced,” said Surapong Paisitpatnapong, vice president and spokesman of the FTI’s Automotive Industry Club.

FTI wants car-exchange scheme to be restricted to locally made autos

Back in May, the FTI had proposed to the government a car-exchange measure under which vehicles 20 years or older could be handed over when a new car is bought, and buyers could be given a Bt100,000 discount. The authorities are working on the details and the criteria should be announced soon.
“Other criteria must also be considered carefully, such as the types of vehicles to be exchanged [cars, pickup trucks], as well as the fuel types [gas, electric, hybrid],” he added. “We need to consider which types of vehicles need to be promoted in the domestic market, and whether or not the exchange of vehicles of different types will be allowed.
“Limiting the scheme to only domestically produced cars would help not only local manufacturers, but also those in related industries and the supply chain,” added Surapong.
“We expect this campaign to help create more than 1 million jobs, most of which are in tier 3 automotive parts manufacturers, which are mostly small and medium-sized enterprises.”

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