What's new in business news: September 20, 2013

Thai-EU trade talks stay away from drug patent expansion, Taiwan pushes for Thai trade deal & corruption cause of recent rash of disrailments alleges Chuwit.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 

Thai-EU trade talks to stay away from drug patent expansion 

Thai negotiators are currently holding discussions with the European Union (EU) on a free trade agreement (FTA). About 100 police in anti-riot gear blocked the road outside the hotel where the negotiations were being held. 

Activists were concerned that the EU might put pressure on Thailand over its medical procurement policies which might cause problems for medical treatment but FTA discussions will not go beyond the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (Trips). The EU's has its own proposal on drug patent expansion, data exclusivity and tougher intellectual property rights known as Trips-Plus.

There is also a special concern over the issue of international arbitration of sensitive cases. A framework set by parliament in 2010, states that environment, public health and macroeconomic policy issues should not allow a dispute to go to international arbitration.

Sensitive issues in  FTA negotiations should be handled according to parliament's resolution to protect the people's interests as the government can't implement any healthcare campaigns or other public services if an EU company files a case in international arbitration. Last year, Phillip Morris filed a lawsuit for international arbitration against the Australian government which had issued regulations to control smoking. 

[Read full story here ]

INTERNATIONAL TRADE 

Taiwan pushes for Thai trade deal

Taiwan is pushing for a bilateral economic partnership with Thailand. Singapore is now the only Asean member to enter negotiations for such a partnership with the country.

Three years ago, Taiwan and China established the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (Ecfa), covering investment and services. The two partners want to expand Ecfa to include trade, hopefully by year-end or in 2014. Thailand could enjoy greater access to China via Ecfa if it has a bilateral free trade agreement with Taipei. Taiwan also looks forward to participating in regional integration under the the Asean Economic Community (AEC) in late 2015.

With combined investment of US$13.2 billion, Taiwan is the third-largest foreign direct investor in Thailand after Japan and the US, with 5,000 Taiwanese companies operating here. Taiwanese ICT products include Acer with a 33% share in the Thai notebook market and HTC is a popular smartphone brand. Taiwanese auto-parts makers have also built up a presence in Thailand. 

[Read full story here ]

TRANSPORTATION 

Chuwit: Graft cause of SRT derailments

Use of low-quality structural steel and track ballast by railway contractors is behind the derailments that have plagued the SRT in 2013, MP Chuwit Kamolvisit has claimed. Between January and September of this year, 114 trains have derailed and went off the tracks, 11 times a month on average, compared with 89 derailments in the whole of 2012. 

In one suspicious transaction, steel for rails was allegedly ordered from a small steel plant in China at 20,000 baht a tonne, 25,000 baht lower than the set price but the factory has no record of exporting steel for use in the construction of a train track.

In another example, a contractor allegedly dug up stone near the track and sold it  to the SRT for use in maintenance of the northern railway tracks. The company allegedly sold what belonged to the State Railway of Thailand back to the state railway.

[Read full story here ]