KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia and Thailand will jointly promote trade in rubberwood products by strengthening and facilitating the cross border process, said Deputy Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities, Datuk Hamzah Zainuddin.
The cooperation is expected to provide a conducive platform for both the countries to network and share information on rubberwood trading regionally and in the international market, he said, adding that the development was another milestone in economic relations between the two.
He said this to reporters after witnessing the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) here yesterday by the Malaysian Timber Council (MTC), Malaysian Timber Industry Board (MTIB) and the Malaysian Furniture Promotion Council (MFPC) with the Thai Parawood Association and the Wood Processing Industry Club of the Federation of Thai Industries.
The MoU was initiated after both parties had a discussion in January this year to jointly promote rubberwood trade.
Subsequently, Malaysia and Thailand also established the Malaysia-Thailand Parawood Committee (MTPC).
The first official meeting of MTPC will be held this afternoon where the chairman and committee members will be elected.
The chairman and secretariat holding would be rotated between the two parties.
Malaysia has a total rubber plantation of 1.02 million hectares while Thailand has 2.6 million hectares.
Hamzah said trade between Malaysia and Thailand amounted to RM56.2 billion last year, with Malaysia recording an export of RM29.8 billion to Thailand against an import of RM26.3 billion.
Amongst the diverse goods traded, timber and timber products represented an important component with their exports totalling no less than RM500 million.
Timber exports to Thailand amounted to RM522.8 million with the main products being sawn timber, plywood, furniture and particleboard. — Bernama