Thai businesspeople too slow to move into Myanmar, long-timer says

[webfact]

Thai businesspeople too slow to move into Myanmar, long-timer says
Achara Deboonme
The Nation
Nay Pyi Taw


A Coca-Cola signboard in Yangon. Its products will be bottled in Myanmar for the first time in 60 years, at the time when over half of consumer products in Myanmar are imported.

BANGKOK: -- The Myanmar Investment Commission granted licences to 33 companies in the first four months of the year, whose total investment amounted to US$815 million (Bt25 billion). Yes, some of them are from Thailand, but a pioneering Thai businessman believes his countrymen are moving into Myanmar too slowly.

Having been in the neighbouring country for 22 years, Chuchart Mektrakarn of Myanmar Nouveau Steel urged more Thai companies to make a move now or lose opportunities to other foreign investors. The investment climate was safe and sound, with skyrocketing land prices the only concern, he stressed.

"Myanmar is like a beautiful girl, drawing lots of attention. Thai companies will have to hurry," he said in an interview.

He was in Nay Pyi Taw with a group of Thai businesspeople who are seeking investment opportunities in Myanmar.

Chuchart decided to establish a factory in Yangon 22 years ago to make zinc-coated roofing tiles, impressed with the peaceful conditions compared with other neighbouring countries and a culture close to Thailand's. He lashed out at the bad perception about Myanmar among Thais, concerning the historic battles between the two countries centuries ago.

Now he spends three weeks of every month in Yangon and one week in Bangkok. Life is easy in Myanmar, he said, with hospitable people, familiar food and culture. He remains in close contact with Bangkok, through telephone and more direct flights to Yangon.

His days in the country started during a visit two decades ago. Travelling with some Thai friends, he made new friends with local people who happened to have friends with some officials. He was then introduced to a local partner, and a 65:35 joint venture was formed to ease the difficulty in obtaining a business licence. The partnership is thriving today, with the partner's assistance in financial and non-financial terms.

The business has flourished from the burgeoning construction in Yangon. It had about 20 Thai employees in the initial period, but now most employees are locals. But the lower cost of products imported from China is forcing the company to adjust its business strategy, probably to diversify into steel manufacturing.

Demand is on the rise, he said. While incoming foreign investment is lower than expected, local business people are getting ready for the economic boom.

'Be sincere'

For newcomers, Chuchart noted that it was important that they show sincerity. Some Thai businessmen have taken advantage of the country, such as cutting down more trees or catching more fish than permitted.

He added that the business environment was more supportive than two decades ago, with the presence of law firms that are ready to assist in supplying information and finding local partners. Plus, the government has been active in stabilising the foreign-exchange rate. The kyat is now quite stable at 950 per US dollar.

The only problem in his view is the cost of land. Privately owned plots are owned by a few groups of locals, making it hard to find land for industrial, commercial or residential development. In time, this will place a hardship on the Myanmar economy.

"Sixty per cent of land in Yangon is in the government's possession. This must be released to increase supply and suppress land prices. Still, the land-release scheme must be carefully drafted. If the new land fell into the hands of military cronies, this would be of no benefit to the economy," he said.

Chuchart noted that the garment association of Hong Kong recently cut a deal to secure a vast land plot for the relocation of some factories. More than 300 garment factories stand to benefit from the European Union's Generalised System of Preferences, which lowers tariffs on garment imports from Myanmar.

"Thai companies must hurry," he said, adding that there were now efforts to revive the Thai businessmen's club in Myanmar to support investment. Chuchart himself led the club in the early days and now he prefers that some new faces handle the job.


-- The Nation 2013-06-17

[ratcatcher]

"Myanmar is like a beautiful girl, drawing lots of attention. Thai companies will have to hurry," he said in an interview"

.Chuchart Mektrakarn

Yes, and the beautiful girl is about to be raped for the third or fourth time.

[bigbamboo]

It's a bugger when foreigners investing in a country can't buy land isn't it.

[noitom]

This place should be right up the alley for Thai guys. Note the taxi parked on the sidewalk in anything goes Thai style.

[chooka]

It's a bugger when foreigners investing in a country can't buy land isn't it.

Are you talking about Burma or Thailand? I only ask because I do not know whether a foreigner can buy land in Myanmar. If they can you may very well see a lot of farangs moving across the border to get ready for the tourist boom.

[Crazy chef 1]

And another problem will be the communication because I really doubt that the vast majority of the Burmese is fluent in Thai.and our Thai friends are not really well known for their English skills nor Burmese .

[Om85]

Most of Thai business people do not like to take risk, that's the way it is

[worgeordie]

Just what Burma needs ,corrupt Thai businessmen and their ways

of getting things done.

regards Worgeordie

[Riley'sLife]

It's a bugger when foreigners investing in a country can't buy land isn't it.

Are you talking about Burma or Thailand? I only ask because I do not know whether a foreigner can buy land in Myanmar. If they can you may very well see a lot of farangs moving across the border to get ready for the tourist boom.

......and I thought Ozzies understood irony !!

[otherstuff1957]

I do some part-time work for a Thai company that is expanding into Burma (as well as Vietnam and Indonesia). They are charging ahead full speed in an effort to stay ahead of the competition.

One problem that we have encountered is our Burmese partners. They seem to be well-intentioned, but they have trouble producing results!

[Thai at Heart]

I do some part-time work for a Thai company that is expanding into Burma (as well as Vietnam and Indonesia). They are charging ahead full speed in an effort to stay ahead of the competition.

One problem that we have encountered is our Burmese partners. They seem to be well-intentioned, but they have trouble producing results!

Really. And I thought it was only Thailand where it was difficult to find competent partners....... How is the protection for minority share holders over there? Is it about the same as Thailand i.e. essentially non-existant?

[bigbamboo]

It's a bugger when foreigners investing in a country can't buy land isn't it.

Are you talking about Burma or Thailand? I only ask because I do not know whether a foreigner can buy land in Myanmar. If they can you may very well see a lot of farangs moving across the border to get ready for the tourist boom.

......and I thought Ozzies understood irony !!

They used to... but that was back in the days when Aussies were called Bruce and used to win the Ashes.

Edited June 17, 2013 by bigbamboo

[hellodolly]

And another problem will be the communication because I really doubt that the vast majority of the Burmese is fluent in Thai.and our Thai friends are not really well known for their English skills nor Burmese .

I was in a local bar cafe here in Chiang Mai trying my best to order my diner in Thai. The waitress said to me in perfect English she was Burmese and could not understand Thai.

I believe now may be the time to start if you are interested and willing to work with in their restrictions. The opertunities are there but they still have huge hurdles to get over.

I don't know how much their money situation has improved. About 5 years ago we did a tour from Mai Sai in Thailand to Monglar on the Chinese Burma border.. Going in the first night was in Kentong where they made me pay in Thai money. In Monglar all they would except was Chinese money. I had not brought enough because I was not expecting a deposit on the key at the hotel they refused my Burmese and Thai money but a fellow watching the whole proceedings nodded his head OK when I showed them a U S $100 bill. On the way home in Kengtng I forced them to take Burmese money.

I might also mention that in Kengtong there was no power during the day. I recognize with the new regime there have been changes but there are still hurdles to go over. I am told they have beautiful beaches but have not heard of any 5 star resorts springing up.

[Unkomoncents]

Most of Thai business people do not like to take risk, that's the way it is

Definitely! Corruption and racketeering have been shown to be much more profitable for Thai businessmen and politicians.

[Tomtomtom69]

And another problem will be the communication because I really doubt that the vast majority of the Burmese is fluent in Thai.and our Thai friends are not really well known for their English skills nor Burmese .

I was in a local bar cafe here in Chiang Mai trying my best to order my diner in Thai. The waitress said to me in perfect English she was Burmese and could not understand Thai.

I believe now may be the time to start if you are interested and willing to work with in their restrictions. The opertunities are there but they still have huge hurdles to get over.

I don't know how much their money situation has improved. About 5 years ago we did a tour from Mai Sai in Thailand to Monglar on the Chinese Burma border.. Going in the first night was in Kentong where they made me pay in Thai money. In Monglar all they would except was Chinese money. I had not brought enough because I was not expecting a deposit on the key at the hotel they refused my Burmese and Thai money but a fellow watching the whole proceedings nodded his head OK when I showed them a U S $100 bill. On the way home in Kengtng I forced them to take Burmese money.

I might also mention that in Kengtong there was no power during the day. I recognize with the new regime there have been changes but there are still hurdles to go over. I am told they have beautiful beaches but have not heard of any 5 star resorts springing up.

I have met Burmese waitresses/waiters in Mae Sot that could barely speak Thai but could speak English although as a border city I can understand that. I wouldn't expect any Burmese waitstaff away from the border working in cities like Chiang Mai to not speak Thai though - it's possible but how would they take orders from Thai customers? Yes some Thai customers can speak English but almost no Thai, no matter how good their English skills may be would expect to walk into a suburban coffee shop and have to speak English to order a coffee in their own country! This is not how Thailand works. Even your average foreign-owned restaurant or bar is required to employ only Thais as waitstaff. Although I have noticed that in Mae Sot, sometimes you have Burmese employees that speak neither English nor Thai and are somehow able to take your order, but get screamed at by the Thai owners of those restaurants although they still don't know what's going on! Perhaps the reason why so many employers hire Burmese for these positions even if they aren't suitable is because they are cheap and they believe they can get away with it if there were ever an immigration inspection.

All in all, I don't think it's worth it hiring workers who are not competent at their jobs - why don't these places just hire Thai people, I thought it was Thailand for Thais anyway? I personally would be happy to employ Burmese, but not if the job required customer interaction and they didn't have the required Thai and English skills or at the least Thai skills (they don't have to be very fluent, just enough to take orders and make themselves understood).

Edited June 17, 2013 by Tomtomtom69

[joepattaya1961]

Investing in Myanmar means also taking a certain risk.

Taking risks is nothing for Thai.

Thai-Chinese may be, but Thai!

Moreover, Thai are pretty slow in decision-taking.....it takes ages before a strategic decision has been taken.

[Tomtomtom69]

Most of Thai business people do not like to take risk, that's the way it is

Definitely! Corruption and racketeering have been shown to be much more profitable for Thai businessmen and politicians.

And then 10-20 years down the track, looking down on countries like Myanmar will start to bite these Thai businessmen in the foot when they realize how much money they could have made. Just look at Laos, culturally, linguistically and socially there is no country closer to Thailand in all these aspects. Yet when you step across that border you see Australian banks and mining investments, and Vietnamese and Chinese investments in every other sector of the economy. Apart from a few token Thai bank branches (only one of each bank) in Vientiane, there is very little evidence of Thailand's presence in Laos except in the form of manufactured goods, TV programming and Thai tourists. All of these things are exports to Laos and none of them represent FDI though.

But of course Thailand will never be able to compete with China though - Thailand's FDI in other countries barely rates a mention in the news media probably because it's so insignificant compared with most other countries.

And while there is some Thai FDI into Myanmar as this article has correctly stated it's very minimal compared to what it potentially could be. A few Thai owned hotels, one or two furniture shops and this businessman's steel business doesn't really cut it - much more is needed.

[crusader79]

Investing in Myanmar means also taking a certain risk.

Taking risks is nothing for Thai.

Thai-Chinese may be, but Thai!

Moreover, Thai are pretty slow in decision-taking.....it takes ages before a strategic decision has been taken.

If you're talking serious business investment you're really only talking Thai Chinese.

[chainarong]

It's a bugger when foreigners investing in a country can't buy land isn't it.

Are you talking about Burma or Thailand? I only ask because I do not know whether a foreigner can buy land in Myanmar. If they can you may very well see a lot of farangs moving across the border to get ready for the tourist boom.

I would wait. There is no corporate laws to speak of, everything is prehistoric, no infrastructure or very little, AtMs , internet ,mobile phones, forget it, government departments unhelpful ,due to no guide lines,.me no understand.

[winstonc]

And another problem will be the communication because I really doubt that the vast majority of the Burmese is fluent in Thai.and our Thai friends are not really well known for their English skills nor Burmese .

I was in a local bar cafe here in Chiang Mai trying my best to order my diner in Thai. The waitress said to me in perfect English she was Burmese and could not understand Thai.

I believe now may be the time to start if you are interested and willing to work with in their restrictions. The opertunities are there but they still have huge hurdles to get over.

I don't know how much their money situation has improved. About 5 years ago we did a tour from Mai Sai in Thailand to Monglar on the Chinese Burma border.. Going in the first night was in Kentong where they made me pay in Thai money. In Monglar all they would except was Chinese money. I had not brought enough because I was not expecting a deposit on the key at the hotel they refused my Burmese and Thai money but a fellow watching the whole proceedings nodded his head OK when I showed them a U S $100 bill. On the way home in Kengtng I forced them to take Burmese money.

I might also mention that in Kengtong there was no power during the day. I recognize with the new regime there have been changes but there are still hurdles to go over. I am told they have beautiful beaches but have not heard of any 5 star resorts springing up.

I have met Burmese waitresses/waiters in Mae Sot that could barely speak Thai but could speak English although as a border city I can understand that. I wouldn't expect any Burmese waitstaff away from the border working in cities like Chiang Mai to not speak Thai though - it's possible but how would they take orders from Thai customers? Yes some Thai customers can speak English but almost no Thai, no matter how good their English skills may be would expect to walk into a suburban coffee shop and have to speak English to order a coffee in their own country! This is not how Thailand works. Even your average foreign-owned restaurant or bar is required to employ only Thais as waitstaff. Although I have noticed that in Mae Sot, sometimes you have Burmese employees that speak neither English nor Thai and are somehow able to take your order, but get screamed at by the Thai owners of those restaurants although they still don't know what's going on! Perhaps the reason why so many employers hire Burmese for these positions even if they aren't suitable is because they are cheap and they believe they can get away with it if there were ever an immigration inspection.

All in all, I don't think it's worth it hiring workers who are not competent at their jobs - why don't these places just hire Thai people, I thought it was Thailand for Thais anyway? I personally would be happy to employ Burmese, but not if the job required customer interaction and they didn't have the required Thai and English skills or at the least Thai skills (they don't have to be very fluent, just enough to take orders and make themselves understood).

first point thais think its below them to do menial work like that,(not all i may add) and you got to give the burmese a chance,,

[PoodMaiDai]

Investing in Myanmar means also taking a certain risk.

Taking risks is nothing for Thai.

Thai-Chinese may be, but Thai!

Moreover, Thai are pretty slow in decision-taking.....it takes ages before a strategic decision has been taken.

They are copy cats, not innovators or leaders. They won't move in large numbers until they see others have done it first.

[winstonc]

rome wasnt built in a day,,,,,imagine a thai face when his BURMESE boss telling him to work harder,,,priceless,,i wonder what would happen if all the burmese went back ,when it starts to take off there,,(hopefully),,,,,the ones left,all of a sudden start to get the minimum wage to stay,,,,,doubt it though,,,,,but i can dream

[PoodMaiDai]

rome wasnt built in a day,,,,,imagine a thai face when his BURMESE boss telling him to work harder,,,priceless,,i wonder what would happen if all the burmese went back ,when it starts to take off there,,(hopefully),,,,,the ones left,all of a sudden start to get the minimum wage to stay,,,,,doubt it though,,,,,but i can dream

I can't imagine Thais working for a Burmese boss. I'm sure it happens somewhere, but I just can't imagine it. Most Thais I've met speak very poorly of Burmese and Lao as if they are lower than pigs. I don't understand why they think this way as they are all basically the same people and at one time Burma was the jewel of Asia where the wealthiest of Thais would go shopping and holiday, and the people were very educated.

ASEAN is about to disrupt a whole lot of Thai people's way of thinking, and I think it will be for better. I only hope the Thais don't do what they always do and turn violent on the other workers from the other nations for "stealing their jobs." Though, I'm sure a new colored shirt will emerge to do exactly that.

[Felt 35]

And another problem will be the communication because I really doubt that the vast majority of the Burmese is fluent in Thai.and our Thai friends are not really well known for their English skills nor Burmese .

I was in a local bar cafe here in Chiang Mai trying my best to order my diner in Thai. The waitress said to me in perfect English she was Burmese and could not understand Thai.

I believe now may be the time to start if you are interested and willing to work with in their restrictions. The opertunities are there but they still have huge hurdles to get over.

I don't know how much their money situation has improved. About 5 years ago we did a tour from Mai Sai in Thailand to Monglar on the Chinese Burma border.. Going in the first night was in Kentong where they made me pay in Thai money. In Monglar all they would except was Chinese money. I had not brought enough because I was not expecting a deposit on the key at the hotel they refused my Burmese and Thai money but a fellow watching the whole proceedings nodded his head OK when I showed them a U S $100 bill. On the way home in Kengtng I forced them to take Burmese money.

I might also mention that in Kengtong there was no power during the day. I recognize with the new regime there have been changes but there are still hurdles to go over. I am told they have beautiful beaches but have not heard of any 5 star resorts springing up.

http://www.sandowayresort.com/home.html

http://www.amaragroup.net/ocean/ocean-en/resort-2/

[KuhnPaen]

any good bars in Burma--preferably of the 'anything goes' variety? Never been there.

I ask only the important questions. Need something to do after visiting the temples.

Edited June 17, 2013 by KuhnPaen

[Thai at Heart]

Note the 65:35 joint venture.

Thais prefer it the other way around.

[mrtoad]

Just what Burma needs ,corrupt Thai businessmen and their ways

of getting things done.

regards Worgeordie

I think Thailand has already missed the bus, China, Singapore and even the US have been getting things done for some time.