Rental, operations and financial leasing, factoring will be allowed to have majority foreign ownership

Four additional restricted businesses - rental, operations leasing, financial leasing and factoring - will be made more open to foreign ownership this week.

"For these four businesses, it will be easier to hold more than 50 per cent in the company," Kanissorn Navanugraha, director-general of the Business Development Department, said last week.

The department has already provided clearer conditions for representative offices, regional representatives, government-related service agencies, and groups consulting for foreign investors.

The contract-manufacturing business will be next to be relaxed under the Foreign Business Act, followed by the brokerage, internal trade involving agricultural goods, advertising agency, hotel operating, beverage and food retailing, seed development, computer service, warehouse control service, pawnshop, school and entertainment businesses.

All of them will still be listed in Annex III of the Foreign Business Act, but will receive more flexible conditions to operate here.

The move is apparently the government's efforts in demonstrating its commitment to opening up for foreign investment.

Commerce Minister Ming-kwan Sangsuwan on Friday assured Japanese investors that all obstacles would be cleared. During their meeting, the investors raised a number of issues, particularly the FBA.

Presently, foreigners who want to operate an Annex III business have to ask for approval from the Foreign Business Act committee. As the new conditions go into effect, foreign investors will no longer be required to ask for the committee's permission. The application procedure and approval process will be predictable and more transparent.

Under the former procedure to allow foreign investors to operate protected businesses in Annex III, the Foreign Business Act committee last week approved requests received this month for foreigners to hold more than 50 per cent in 29 companies in several industries. The main ones are agency offices, government-related service agencies, subsidiaries of foreign firms and logistics management firms.

Deputy Commerce Minister Banyin Tangpakorn has instructed the department to set up a committee to come up with a concrete plan on whether to amend the act by next month.

The new amendment should be friendlier to foreign investors, while still ensuring the survival of local enterprises, as the last version was too strict in controlling foreign investors, he said.