Malaysia lifts 20-year ban on Thai rice flour exports
Malaysia is allowing Thailand to export rice flour to the western part of the country after shipments were halted for almost 20 years, Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said on Sunday.
The move came after a long-standing ban on issuing licences for Malaysian importers to import rice flour to the west was lifted, he said.
"We found that Malaysian agencies responsible for issuing licences to import products to the western and eastern parts of the country were different," Jurin explained.
In response, Thailand’s trade envoy in Malaysia had asked importers to send evidence to the Department of Trade Negotiations (DTN) for negotiations between the countries, he added.
Recently, Malaysian importers had informed the DTN and Thai trade envoy that they had received the licences.
"Thailand can now export rice flour to the western part of Malaysia after exports were suspended for almost 20 years," Jurin said.
He added that that Malaysia's move should boost the value of Thailand's exports and trade with its southern neighbour.
Thailand exported goods worth 75.34 billion baht via Malaysia’s border in the first five months of this year. Exports of rice products via the channel in the first five months of this year rose 12.5 per cent.
