First Thai-Saudi business matching webinar expected to launch THB10bn annual trade

The online event will take place later this month and follows Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit’s trade trip to Saudi Arabia last month.

FTI chairman Kriengkrai Thiennukul hailed the trip as a success after it resulted in an agreement to forge a Joint Business Council.

The collaboration between the two nations’ private sectors is expected to boost Thai exports of agricultural products, food, electronics, automobiles, and services.

Mutual trade is forecast to exceed 10 billion baht within one year of the signing of the agreement to establish the Thai-Saudi Arabian Business Council, said Kriengkrai.

Meanwhile Saudi Arabia will need more cooperation from Thai investors and businesses to develop its ambitious US$500-billion Neom smart city project, he added. Neom is part of the Saudi Vision 2030 strategy to reduce reliance on oil and create a more diverse economic model.

Kriengkrai commented that Thai products have already gained a foothold in the Saudi market.

"I discovered that Thai goods and services are quite popular among Saudi Arabians, and this is a new opportunity after three decades to reconnect with a huge potential market," he said. 

Thai-Saudi relations were frozen for three decades amid the Blue Diamond affair after a Thai janitor stole gems from a Saudi palace in 1989.
 

The desert kingdom also pledged to facilitate visa processes for Thai businesses, and showed special interest in Thailand’s food, construction and air conditioner industries.

Saudi Arabia is currently Thailand's 29th-largest export market. The value of trade between the two countries has increased by 46.42 per cent in the last seven months. Exports increased 14.79 per cent to $1.1 billion, while imports rose 56.83 per cent to $4.6 billion.