WHA chief urges govt to lure investors leaving China after Covid-19
There is a strong possibility of investments moving from China to Southeast Asia after the Covid-19 crisis is resolved, and the Thai government should collaborate with the private sector to woo investors to Thailand, WHA Group's chairman of the executive committee, Jareeporn Jarukornsakul said.
She said the incentives offered by the Board of Investment should cover all industries Thailand is interested in.
She also said that both the US and Japan wanted the investments return to them, but the production cost in the two countries is high. WHA estimated that those technological bases would return to Japan, while others would come to Asean.
She said the WHA has not been impacted much by Covid-19. WHA's logistics business had a good turnover due to expansion of e-commerce, while its industrial estate has been affected by the virus and is expected to recover in the second half of 2020.
The WHA president said investments in technologies, such as 5G and robots, would increase after the Covid-19 crisis is resolved. Industry 4.0 would come earlier than we expected, she added.
Those technologies and industries related to health would draw more investment. Thailand could use its ability to deal with Covid-19 as a strong point to draw investment, she added.