At the APEC Conference held earlier this month in Beijing, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha met with Rubber Valley Group CEO and President Zhang Yan, China Chemical Industry News reported today. At the meeting, Mr. Prayut expressed that Thailand will add further policies upon existing ones specifically aimed at enticing tire manufacturers to invest in the country; these include building a Chinese tire industrial park and various tax reduction and exemption policies.
Mr. Prayut (pictured, left) recommended that Chinese tire manufacturers interested into expanding into the country should first look at rubber-producing areas in the south of the country. He also added that the eastern and northeastern parts of the country are also good options, where tire manufacturing bases could be installed in order to facilitate materials logistics and reduce costs.
Mr. Prayut was also very aware by the important role e-commerce platforms like the Rubber Valley Natural Rubber Exchange play in the overall supply chain. He further recommended that manufacturers should work together with the Thai Ministry of Commerce and Board of Investment. Commenting on Mr. Prayut's cooperation with King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok in the fields of education and science, Mr. Prayut affirmed that R&D innovation and training are the future direction of the Thai tire industry.
Through all of this, Mr. Prayut stated desire to see groups like Rubber Valley to help bring Chinese manufacturers to field visits of Thailand to see which areas are best for investment and expansion.
