Thailand and China are considering details of a deal to barter Thai
farm products for the construction of a high-speed rail route.
The deal is expected to become clearer in November and finalised before the year’s end.
Thai
Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Niwatthamrong
Bunsongphaisan said the country will export its farm products to China
to get payment of high-speed rail route construction expenses.
China has shown its interests in investing in Thailand’s high-speed rail projects.
It has inked with Thailand the minutes on the building of a high-speed
rail route between Bangkok and the northeastern province of Noong Khai,
which borders Laos. The route will create connectivity between China’s
southern region and ASEAN.
The country has demands
for rice, rubber and tapioca and intends to buy 1 million tonnes of rice
a year in five years and 200,000 tonnes of rubber a year from Thailand
through government-to-government contracts, according to the Thai Deputy
Prime Minister.
Thailand and China aim at a two-way trade turnover of 100 billion USD by 2015, compared to 70 billion USD in 2012.-VNA