Thailand to request EU to retain 57 items on GSP

BANGKOK, July 5 (TNA) – Commerce Ministry officials will travel and request authorities of the European Union (EU) later this month to retain 57 items of Thai goods under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP), said Commerce Minister Boonsong Teriyapirom on Thursday. He said the request would be made following reports that the EU might scrap the 57 items of Thai goods from enjoying its GSP privileges. Officials of the Ministry’s Trade Negotiations Department are negotiating with EU officials in retaining Thai goods under the GSP system. The EU may scrap its GSP offered to Thai goods after finding that Thailand’s per capita income now exceeds 3,700 U.S. dollars as specified by the grouping but Thai government thinks that some items still need GSP benefits for competitiveness purposes, Boonsong said. Touching on the outbreak of the deadly bird flu in China which might affect Thailand’s exports of chicken meat to the EU, Boonsong said he did not believe so because chicken are raised under the closed farming in the kingdom and in fact the EU has started giving purchasing orders for fresh chicken meat from this country. The EU has allowed Thailand to resume its export of fresh chicken meat since this July 1 after imposing the ban in 2004. Boonsong’s remarks were made while he was visiting the office of the Agricultural Futures Exchange of Thailand (AFET). He said maize and tapioca may be added on the AFET board in future to help boost sales and assist growers. Presently, only rice and natural rubber are traded on AFET. (TNA)