Thailand is scheduled to host the second round of talks for the Thailand-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) from Jan 22-26 in Bangkok, with an aim to conclude the negotiations in 2025.
According to Chotima Iemsawasdikul, director-general of the Trade Negotiations Department, the Commerce Ministry will simultaneously convene discussions for heads of delegations and expert subcommittees.
These sessions will delve into the specifics of each issue, facilitating exchange of information and fostering a deeper mutual understanding, she said.
At the head of delegation level, Ms Chotima is leading the Thai negotiators, while Christophe Kiener heads the EU delegation.
The subcommittee meetings involve 19 expert groups, with the Thai team including representatives from the Commerce, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Agriculture and Cooperatives, Digital Economy and Society, Public Health, Natural Resources and Environment, Energy and Industry ministries.
She said these subcommittee meetings will cover various topics including trade in goods; rules of origin for goods; customs procedures and trade facilitation; trade remedies; plant and animal health measures; technical barriers to trade; trade in services and investment; and digital trade.
Other areas include: intellectual property; competition and subsidies; government procurement; trade and sustainable development; small and medium-sized enterprises; state-owned enterprises; energy and raw materials; sustainable food systems; transparency and good regulatory practices; dispute settlement; and preliminary provisions, general provisions, final provisions, institutional provisions and exceptions.
Regarding the results of the first round of negotiations held in September last year in Brussels, Ms Chotima said both Thailand and the EU had positive discussions, exchanging draft proposals and gaining an understanding of each other's policies and regulations.
The EU was Thailand's fourth-largest trading partner in 2022 behind China, the US and Japan.
Trade between Thailand and the EU tallied US$41 billion in 2022, with goods exports to the EU worth $22.8 billion and imported goods valued at $18.2 billion.
For the first 11 months of last year, total trade between Thailand and the EU amounted to $38.5 billion. Thailand exported goods worth $20.1 billion to the EU, while imports from the EU were valued at $18.4 billion.
Key exports included computers and parts, gems and jewellery, air conditioners and parts, and electrical circuits and transformers. Major imported products included machinery and components, medical and pharmaceutical products, electrical machinery and components, chemicals, and aircraft and parts.