On 18 August 2022, the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Shanghai, in cooperation with Shanghai Foreign Investment Development Board, organized the 5^th Bangkok - Shanghai Economic Conference (BSEC) under the topic “RCEP: A Catalyst in Boosting Economy and Deepening Thailand - YRD Economic Partnership in a Post-COVID-19 Era” at the Portman Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Shanghai. There were around 70 government officials, business executives, academic and media participating on-site, while over 5,300 people joined the live broadcast. 

The main objectives of this Conference were to promote Thailand - Yangtze River Delta (YRD) concrete economic cooperation, including in support of robust recovery from COVID-19, and to maximize the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in contributing to that end.    

In her remarks, Ms. Lada Phumas, Consul-General of Thailand in Shanghai, highlighted that the RCEP could strengthen Thailand - YRD and Thailand - China partnership through trade, e-commerce, support for MSMEs, human capital development and investment in innovation-driven areas, including the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economy which is Thailand’s post-COVID-19 recovery strategy and a key area of cooperation in APEC under Thailand’s chairmanship this year.  Recommendations in deepening this mutually-beneficial partnership through enhanced connectivity, increasing business engagements, and fostering a multi-stakeholder partnership were also emphasized.  

For the Chinese side, Ms. Zhu Yi, Deputy Director-General of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, underscored that the RCEP would boost confidence and enhance linkages between enterprises of Thailand and the YRD, especially as Thailand is a center of Southeast Asia and the YRD is the pioneer in China’s opening up. 

Mr. Xue Feng, President of Shanghai Foreign Investment Development Board, introduced measures to support foreign investment in Shanghai and the YRD including in the RCEP context.  He further stressed that the RCEP was a highly relevant topic and the diverse representation and views to be expressed would provide added contribution to this Conference. 

Mr. Chen Jiangfeng, Deputy Director-General of Foreign Affairs Department of Zhejiang, underlined that the RCEP would further promote Thailand - Zhejiang investment cooperation, including at the Thai - Chinese Rayong Industrial Zone in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) of Thailand. 

Dr. Kanit Sangsubhan, Secretary-General of the EEC Office of Thailand, Mr. Narit Therdsteerasukdi, Deputy Secretary-General of Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) and Ms. Auramon Supthaweethum, Director-General of Department of Trade Negotiations, Ministry of Commerce of Thailand, were also invited to address the Conference via video messages on emerging economic opportunities arising from the RCEP, where investment promotion policies at the EEC, overall support for inbound and outbound investment as well as the synergy between the implementation of the RCEP and the ASEAN - China FTA were highlighted. Ms. Donlaporn Ajavavarakula, Director of Thailand BOI Shanghai Office further added economic and business potentials of investing in Thailand under the RCEP. 

In putting policies into practice, there was a panel discussion to share business visions and investment experiences in Thailand and the YRD utilizing the RCEP, with the focus on agro-business, smart farming and electric vehicles.  Distinguished panelists included Mr. Qian Jun, Executive President of Finance and Investment of Charoen Pokphand Group in China, Mr. Jiang Feng, Vice President of Hozon New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd., Ms. Adhinand Indrapim, Agriculture Consul at the Thai Consulate-General in Shanghai, and Mr. Mao Qiankun, Chief Marketing Officer of WestMeta, with Ms. Donlaporn Ajavavarakula moderating this session.  

The 5^th BSEC further helped connect Thai and Chinese businesses together.  The Royal Thai Consulate-General, therefore, initiated and launched the “Virtual Thai Company Gallery”, which compiles information on Thai companies with high potential to cooperate with China and the YRD, to be hosted at www.thaibizchina.com.

For those interested to watch the recording of the 5^th BSEC, it can be accessed for the next 6 months at the QR code below.

The 5^th BSEC has built on the previous meeting in 2021 in strengthening Thailand’s closer economic partnership with the YRD as a whole and emphasizing more on cooperation on strategic issues and sectors of business.  Hence, the 5^th BSEC’s focus on agro-business and electric vehicles rightly serves this purpose.  Agricultural products have continued to rank among the top exports from Thailand to the YRD and electric vehicles are not only an area of the YRD’s strength but also a targeted industry of Thailand in the implementation of its “30/30” policy in which Thailand aims to produce electric vehicles at least 30% of its total vehicle production by 2030.