BANGKOK: In an effort to boost exports during the second half of this year, the Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) will focus on penetrating the China and Hong Kong markets with Thai soft power, leaning heavily on things such as food, fruits, fashion, films and fairs, an official says.

Eight of DITP’s offices in China and Hong Kong have been tasked with organising activities to promote these goods, the department’s director-general Phusit Ratanakul Seriroengrit said on Monday.

Thai food promotion festivals will be held in Hong Kong and China both on-site and on social media, focusing on raising awareness of foods that have been awarded its Thai SELECT certification.

“Activities will be held during important festivals in China, such as the beer festival in Qingdao and the summer festival in Shanghai,” he said, adding that these activities will be broadcast on digital platforms like Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu), Weibo and Dianping.

Similar activities will be held at malls in six secondary cities - Dongguan, Wuhan, Liuzhou, Xiamen, Xi’an and Ningxia.

Phusit said activities to promote Thai fruits had kicked off in Kunming, Chongqing, Jiangxi and Guangzhou in May, generating 40 million baht in trade value.

“These activities focused on introducing the taste, quality, safety standards and variety of Thai fruits,” he noted.

He said DITP will collaborate with Hema Supermarket in organising a festival to promote durian, mangosteen, coconut, pomelo and longan and will also collaborate with 11 Thai restaurants in Shanghai to offer special dishes featuring Thai fruits.

Phusit said the department has plans to promote fashion items and accessories in China and Hong Kong through a gala night in Shanghai in August and a Thailand pavilion and Thai fashion show in Hong Kong on Sept 4-7.

Turning to films, he confirmed that the hit Thai movie film Lahn Mah or How To Make Millions Before Grandma Dies had received a good response in Hong Kong and the DIPT office in Shanghai is planning to promote Lahn Mah prior to its release in China in September this year.

The DIPT had also selected Thai entrepreneurs to attend several trade fairs in China, such as Thai Brands Kunming 2024 on July 23-28, China-Asean Expo 2024 on Sept 24-28, and China International Import Expo on Nov 5-10, and the department will collaborate with shopping malls and convenience stores in China and Hong Kong to hold fairs promoting Thai products.

- ANN