BANGKOK: Thailand is prepared to deal with the fallout of the 36% so-called reciprocal tariff imposed by the Trump administration, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra says.
Paetongtarn added that the South-East Asian country would hold talks with the United States to lower the levy.
The ministries of finance and commerce will take the lead in devising short-term measures to deal with the impact on manufacturers and exporters, Paetongtarn told reporters yesterday.
Given the higher tariffs are not yet effective, there’s scope for negotiations to bring it down to a more reasonable level, she said.
“Don’t worry. We have prepared several steps”, Paetongtarn said in response to questions on how her government planned to deal with the new tariff.
The average Thai tariff on US goods was 9% and the Trump administration may have factored in several non-tariff barriers to trade in imposing such a steep levy, Paetongtarn said. Thailand’s trade surplus with the United States totalled US$45bil last year. — Bloomberg
