No effect on Customs revenue from Cambodia-Thailand border clashes.

via CAAI

By Wichit Chaitrong

The Nation

Only Chong Chom customs check was closed due to the cross-border fighting between Cambodia and Thailand, said Customs Department director-general Prasong Poontaneat.

"We follow advice from the security force," he said. There is no adverse impact on Customs revenue due to the free trade pact, but the battles affects both sides' daily trade, he said.

While the Federation of Thai Industries chairman Payungsak Chartsuthipol said the intensified border dispute has short-term effect on trade and investment. "We're worried but the situation is contained at the border, not in big cities," he said. Thai investors in Cambodia may have planned to evacuate but the situation still remains quite normal in a large part of the country, he said.

Thais invest over Bt10 billion in Cambodia with the bilateral trade accounts for about Bt50 billion per year and Thailand gains a large surplus in trade, he said. He expects both sides will attempt to solve the border conflict by a peaceful mean.