Thai Chamber of Commerce assures public, discourages panic buying

The Thai Chamber of Commerce yesterday reassured the public that production of food and other consumable goods is more than adequate to meet domestic demand, and that there is no danger of shortages. Many manufacturers having already ramped up their capacity to ensure there are products on shelves around the country.

The Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade of Thailand’s President, Kalin Sarasin, says demand for consumable products will likely increase if the Covid-19 coronavirus spreads further. And as more and more people will be working from home, he urged restaurants to join forces with delivery services to offer food deliveries, to help at least food businesses survive the crisis.

Kalin says manufacturers have confirmed their production and logistics capacity is sufficient to ensure there are no food shortages, and that while customers stockpiling groceries in recent days may have resulted in alarming images of empty shelves, this was only because store employees could not refill the shelves quickly enough.

Kalasin urged the government to allow goods vehicles to run day and night to keep stocks replenished, and to reduce the import duty on surgical masks and medical equipment.

He said the government’s economic measures to help businesses affected by the pandemic will allow these businesses to continue to operate.

SOURCE: The Pattaya News