On 21 July 2025, H.E. Ms. Lada Phumas, Ambassador of Thailand to Malaysia, hosted a working lunch for a delegation from the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) at the Ambassador's Residence in Kuala Lumpur during a visit to Kuala Lumpur, Sabah, Sarawak, and Brunei Darussalam, under the program “Executive Thai Trade Mission to Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam: Exploring Trade & Investment Opportunities” during 21 - 26 July 2025. Mr. Chatchai Panicheewa, Vice Chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries and Chairman of the Trade and Investment Department led 21 members including executives from key industrial sectors including food and beverages, glass, health and wellness, energy and petrochemicals, digital, freight and trailer transport services, fertilizers, animal feed, as well as footwear and bag manufacturing. The working lunch was also attended by Mr. Worawan Wanwil, Minister-Counsellor (Commercial).

 

During the discussion, the Royal Thai Embassy and the delegation exchanged views on Malaysia’s economic developments and 2025 economic outlook, Malaysia’s recent government policies affecting Thai business as well as challenges encountered by the business sector amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainties, particularly in light of the U.S. import tariff measures on Malaysia. The discussion also highlighted opportunities to further strengthen Thai-Malaysian economic relations.

 

The Ambassador emphasised the close cooperation between the Royal Thai Embassy, the FTI, and the Thai private sector through various Embassy’s programs and initiatives, and was pleased to meet, for the first time, a representative of the Thai-Malaysia Business Council who participated in the mission. On this occasion, the Ambassador reaffirmed the Embassy’s commitment to supporting the Thai private sector, which plays a significant role in enhancing Thai-Malaysian trade and investment relations and reiterated the shared goal of achieving a bilateral trade volume of USD 30 billion by 2027.