Donald Trump suspends US$1.3 billion in trade preferences for Thailand over workers’ rights

The suspension, to take effect April 25, will focus on products for which the US is a relatively important market for the Southeast Asian nation

Trade preferences for all Thai seafood products will be revoked due to ‘long-standing worker rights issues in the seafood and shipping industries’

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Migrant workers sort fish on a Thai fishing boat. File photo: AFP

Published: 2:22pm, 26 Oct 2019Updated: 9:16pm, 26 Oct 2019

United States President Donald Trump has suspended US$1.3 billion in trade preferences for Thailand because of its failure “to adequately provide internationally-recognised worker rights”, such as protection for freedom of association and collective bargaining.

The suspension, to take effect April 25, will focus on products for which the US is a relatively important market for the Southeast Asian nation, but where Thailand accounts for a relatively small share of US imports, the US Trade Representative office said in a statement.

Eligibility of all Thai seafood products for the so-called Generalised System of Preferences will be revoked due to “long-standing worker rights issues in the seafood and shipping industries”, the statement showed.

“I need more time to assess the impact as we just got the list of affected products,” Pimchanok Vonkorpon, director general of the Thai Commerce Ministry’s trade policy and strategy office, said in a text message.

The US action comes even after Thailand took steps against fishing industry abuses, prompting the European Commission to lift the threat of a ban on Thai seafood. Trade under the Generalised System of Preferences between Thailand and the US totalled US$4.8 billion in 2018.

The Southeast Asian country’s overall exports to the US totalled US$31.9 billion last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.