By Lily Wang

On March 18， the China-Thailand Investment Cooperation Forum， organized by BOI （the Thailand Board of Investment）， CCOIC （the China Chamber of International Commerce） and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council， was held online. The CCPIT and CCOIC Chairperson Gao Yan， Thailands Deputy Prime Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council Chairman Lin Jianyue attended the forum and delivered speeches.

Bilateral cooperation keeps improving

Gao Yan said that Chinese-Thai business cooperation has a solid background and that China has become Thailands largest trade partner for 8 consecutive years. Bilateral cooperation in the digital economy， e-commerce and other innovative businesses has shown strong flexibility and large space for cooperation. China will implement the 14th Five-Year Plan this year， in order to accelerate the building of a new development pattern with domestic circulation as the mainstay and with domestic and international circulation promoting each other. China will also deepen its reform and opening-up and promote high-quality Belt and Road construction. The CCPIT will further play to its own strengths， build an effective service platform， and make more contributions to business cooperation between China and Thailand.

“As a result of the heavy impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the supply chain and the global economy， all countries need to reorganize their own supply chains. This will undoubtedly require cooperation between different economies and now is the best time to arrange future cooperation. The road to rejuvenation requires our concerted efforts，” Supattanapong Punmeechaow said in his speech. In 2020， the investment projects submitted by China and Hong Kong accounted for approximately a quarter of Thailands total inbound investment. It is believed that China and Thailand will form a closer relationship based on their past success. During the “Thailand 4.0 phase”， the Thai government will further promote the growth of innovation and technology-driven industries， aiming to make full use of the current advantages and build Thailand into a flexible， safe， sustainable and cost-effective supply chain area and business center. Furthermore， Thailand is committed to building the EEC （East Economic Corridor） into a new growth base for ASEAN countries. Thailand is also willing to provide full support for Chinese investors.

“There are many challenges to overcome in the future. If we can further promote the business cooperation between China and Thailand， we will achieve greater success and revitalize the whole regional economy，” said Lin Jianyue. He also emphasized that success not only means the free flow of trade and investment， but also indicates mutual development by playing to each countries strengths. When focusing on innovation and investment together， it will be possible to achieve better results of cooperation. For example， the EEC shares many common features with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Gulf Region， as both regions are clusters of many economic sectors and have strong potential in terms of trade and investment， financial innovation and talent development. Hong Kong is an international financial center and has strong advantages in innovation and technology. It will play an important role in the investment innovation and economic development between China and Thailand.

Focus on high-tech industry projects

It is known that this forum is themed around“Flexible strategy： building a Thai Innovation Investment Center”， which aims to further advance the investment cooperation between China and Thailand， and push more Chinese companies to invest in Thailand. The forum features policy interpretation， experience sharing， themed discussions， and corporate question and answer sessions to help companies better understand the investment support policies of Thailand. Around 300 Chinese companies in project contracts， network， light industry， pharmacy， finance， services and other sectors attended the forum.

BOI Deputy Secretary-general Narit Therdsteerasukdi said that in 2012， Chinas investment projects in Thailand surpassed 100 for the first time. Each year after this there were another 40-50 investment cooperation projects added to this.

Furthermore， China raised the Belt and Road strategy to encourage and support Chinese businesses to increase their overseas investments. This enabled Thailand and the EEC to become the gateway to investment in ASEAN regions by Chinese companies. Mostof the Chinese investment projects are located in the EEC area， including Chachoengsao Province， Chon Buri Province and Rayong Province.

China and Thailand has been sharing close communications in many areas. The Thai people have high praise for Chinese investors and products. For example， Chinas major smart phone brands are popular among Thai consumers.

At the forum， Huawei Technology （Thailand） Co.， Ltd. General Manager Deng Feng said that since the establishment of the branch company and office in Thailand in 1999， Huawei has been developing in Thailand for more than 20 years. Huawei not only does business in Thailand， but also hopes to work with Thailand to promote the development of the digital industry. Deng Feng is confident about the future digital innovation of Thailand. He said that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated global digitization by 5-7 years. Digital innovation will become their new theme. With this trend， it is estimated that in 2025， approximately 97% of Thai companies will use AI technology， and approximately 60% of small- and medium-sized companies will use cloud services. In the arena of 5G， Thailand is the leading country in the ASEAN area. So far， the number of 5G users has reached 1 million and Thailand is also leading the world in terms of digital banking and e-commerce coverage. Whats more， Thailand has a good business environment and is the geographical center of ASEAN.

Chinas business success in Thailand has also helped promote better development for Thailand. For example， the first batch of locally-produced vehicles by the China CWM Rayong factory made their debut at the automobile show， and Thailands e-shopping platforms have received investment from both Alibaba and Tencent. A BOI representative said that more and more Chinese companies are expected to invest in Thailand， especially high-tech companies. Southeast Asia will become a new market leading the world economic growth.

BOI official data shows that in 2019， there were 249 investment projects from China， with a total investment of THB 270 billion （including THB 190 billion for the China-Thailand highspeed railway project）. 2019 was also the year when China replaced Japan as the country investing the most in Thailand for the first time.

Against the background of the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020， Chinas investment in Thailand shrank a little bit， with 235 investment projects and a total investment of THB 40.7 billion， again ranking second after Japan. However， experts say that this year and next year， Chinas investment in Thailand will continue to grow in terms of both project quantity and investment value. Thailand has become an important destination for investment under the Belt and Road framework.

In order for Thailand to attract EEC investment， it is important for Chinese companies to focus on the following sectors： new energy vehicles （NEV）， including EV batteries and components； the Internet of Things （IOT）； the digital and AI area； automation and robotics systems； life sciences， especially pharmaceuticals and gene mapping； chemical oil product development； and building international headquarters in Thailand.