Myawady checkpoint swamped by Thai goods

The amount of goods imported from Thailand via the Myawady checkpoint has been rising as this route enables efficient logistics and shorter transit period. 

Traders, including those from Yangon and Mandalay, have been crowding the Myawady checkpoint. Merchants who previously brought goods in through the Kawthaung and Yanaung border checkpoints have also returned to Myawady since it opened again after a 17-month temporary closure.

The demand for storage space as risen significantly. Though the warehousing capacity at Myawady was only meant to meet exporters’ demands, it is overwhelmed by the requirements of importers who buy up goods through the checkpoint, a merchant said. Traders have now started transferring goods directly from one truck to another as there is no space to store goods temporarily.

“The arrangement usually gets problematic when we are unable to hire trucks on our side. It’s a real problem that we cannot rent storage space as we cannot afford to buy a warehouse ourselves. If the government allowed more land for storage, up to 30 companies would invest in it,” a local trader said. 

“The Myawady border region was in the past a restive area and the checkpoint was subject to closures. Since the status of the checkpoint was previously unpredictable, traders made no preparations for trading at this border. Now they are facing storage problems,” an importer based in Myawady said.

An official from the checkpoint, meanwhile, said the merchants should behave professionally rather than scrambling for profits.