The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or RCEP, has already helped Thailand sustain trade growth with other member countries. Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha lauded this positive outcome and asked Thai businesses to leverage this partnership.
According to the Ministry of Commerce, Thailand in the first half of 2022 recorded 169 billion U.S. dollars in trade value with RCEP partners, a 13% year-on-year growth. The country’s export to RECP partners within the same period grew 9% at 78.17 billion dollars.
The Ministry of Commerce’s report suggests all categories of exported goods have benefited from the RECP deal, including processed farmed products, farmed goods, and industrial goods.
RCEP is a new free trade agreement with 15 members, namely the 10 ASEAN countries, Japan, South Korea, China, Australia, and New Zealand. The pact has a combined population of 2.3 billion people, and a combined GDP of 28.5 trillion U.S. dollars, or around 33.6% of the global GDP.
The Thai government is encouraging businesses to fully leverage the benefits provided through RCEP, which can help reduce manufacturing costs, improve performance, and enhance competitiveness.
One of the strengths provided by RCEP is its rules of origin, which allow businesses to obtain tax waivers more easily, in a more streamlined process.
The Department of Foreign Trade has already set up the certificate of origin request system for eligible businesses to apply for tariff waivers and reductions. More information is available on the department’s website www.dft.go.th, or call the 1385 hotline. (NNT)
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