Thailand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have agreed to form a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and establish a Joint Business Council to expand bilateral trade and investment cooperation, with the goal of increasing Thai exports to 30 billion baht this year.
Speaking on Tuesday after leading a group of public and private sector executives in a discussion with UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said it was a historic day for the two countries to agree on a mechanism to enhance economic cooperation.
The two nations aim to complete the details of the planned agreement within six months.
According to Mr Jurin, the CEPA will help expand bilateral trade, investment and economic cooperation in terms of both depth and breadth.
Thai and UAE business sectors also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Tuesday to set up a Joint Business Council to move forward with trade, investment and economic cooperation.
Thai businesses in the logistics and transport sector also signed an MoU yesterday on logistics cooperation with Dubai World, a global air freight network with 78 ports and 240 airports around the world.
Mr Jurin said he asked UAE investors to invest in Thailand and make the best use of privileges offered by Thailand through free trade agreements (FTAs).
Thailand has 14 FTAs in place with 18 countries, including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which took effect at the start of last year.
He said the Commerce Ministry is aiming for export growth of 25% to the UAE this year, a total of 148 billion baht, up from 118 billion last year.
Important Thai exports to the UAE include automobiles, air conditioners, jewellery, wood and wooden products, rubber products, canned and processed seafood, and aluminium products.
Significant imports from the UAE include crude oil, refined oil, natural gas, metal ores, metal scraps and products, jewellery and gems, silver bars and gold, chemicals, iron, steel and steel products, tobacco products, machinery and components, and metal products.
The UAE economy is the fifth-largest in the region after Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Israel, with a GDP of US$503 billion in 2022.
Its economy is heavily reliant on revenue from petroleum and natural gas, with such exports contributing 30% of GDP.
