Thailand plans to boost exports to NZ by eight percent in 2014

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The Commerce Ministry has planned to boost Thai exports to New Zealand by eight percent in 2014 from last year, said Nantawan Sakuntanak, director-general of the International Trade Promotion Department.

Nantawan said her department would use the Thailand-New Zealand Closer Economic Partnership Agreement and the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement as major tools in boosting Thai exports, and this would assist Thailand’s small- and medium-sized enterprises in cooperating with the government to boost their production and exports of agricultural products.

Nantawan Sakuntanak, director-general of the International Trade Promotion Department.Nantawan Sakuntanak, director-general of the International Trade Promotion Department.

Also, ten exhibitions of Thai goods would be organized for 2015 and senior executives from New Zealand would be invited to visit Thailand, she said.

The department has targeted to double bilateral trade by 2020.

Bhuthong Thongyai, director of the International Trade Promotion office in Sydney, said that trade between ASEAN and New Zealand during one year, from June 2013 to July 2014, increased to about 13.46 billion NZ dollars, or 13.4 percent of New Zealand’s total trade.

Goods exported by ASEAN member countries to New Zealand accounted 16.7 percent during the same period, said Bhuthong, adding that the majority of goods exported by the regional grouping were: petroleum products, animal feedstuff, plastic, rubber and seafood.