From Bangkokpost

Thai entrepreneurs with expertise in fields such as electronics, automobiles, infrastructure and food should start to look more seriously at India, where the middle-class market is expanding by 25 million people a year.

Thailand sees India as a market that is set to be the engine of growth for Asia, Deputy Prime Minister Suwit Khunkitti said at the opening of the five-day India Fair 2008 this week at Impact Arena in Bangkok.

Areas such as science, technology, energy and others should all be looked at, he said.

Two-way trade between the countries had reached $5 billion annually and had potential to grow much higher, he added.

Mr Suwit said that other Thai companies should learn from the Indian experiences of companies such as Italian Thai Development Plc, Thai Summit Group and Rockworth Plc.

While India’s economy has slowed lately because of the impact of high fuel prices, growth over the past five years has averaged 9% and the country is now creating more jobs than China, said Rajiv Kaul, the former head of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).

”Today India is adding more jobs, more mobile phone subscribers and more middle-income population per year than any country in the world,” he said.

Like any other country, India has its drawbacks but they should not deter investors looking for long-term returns, he added.

”If you look at the data, two-way trade (between Thailand and India) in 2007 stood at $4.7 billion, a rise of 38% over 2006, and in the first five months of this year, it has grown by 33.8% _ all this despite the perceived global economic slowdown,” Mr Suwit said.

Trade between the two countries has grown steadily from just $1.09 billion in 2002, with Thailand generally on the surplus side, benefiting from a free trade pact that both countries hope to enlarge this year.

Indian observers note, though, that Thai investment in their country is still dwarfed by the commitments made in Thailand by the likes of Aditaya Birla Group, Indorama and Tata Group.

Even so, Mr Kaul estimated that Indian companies have invested only about $1 billion over the past few years in Thailand, against $17 billion that they spent on foreign acquisitions and expansion globally in 2007 alone.

He said the two countries needed a new roadmap to lead to greater co-operation, and he has proposed a committee that would study all aspects of business to help spur trade.

More forward planning is needed, he says, since India is embarking on a major infrastructure spending spree that could be worth up to $500 billion over the next few years for road, rail lines, airports, dams, power projects, water supply and irrigation.

”There are Thai companies that can take advantage of these opportunities and we do not want them to miss out,” he said.

Among the steps Mr Kaul has recommended:

FA joint task force to examine opportunities for new trade products and to establish a road map. The reason is that two-way trade is currently dominated by only five product categories and more opportunities should be looked into.

FMore trade missions from both sides to substantially increase information exchange and engagement.

FGreater involvement by small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which are the heart and soul of both the Thai and Indian economies.

FMore links between the CII and Thai business associations such as the Federation of Thai Industries.

FGreater region-to-region interaction, with ports a prime example. One possible link would involve Port Blair in India and the future ports that would be set up in the various Andaman regions of Thailand.