“We have brought the first large scale US business mission to Thailand since 2005,” said Matthew Daley, President of the US-ASEAN Business Council and co-leader of the delegation with Laura Hudson, Chevron and Chair of the Council’s Thailand Committee.

Corporate executives from twenty-four of the world’s top companies spent three days in Bangkok and meeting with Prime Minister Samak and his entire economic team.

“We kicked off the Business Mission with a Business Summit entitled: ‘Thailand-US Partnership Success Stories’ organized jointly by the US-ASEAN Business Council, AmCham Thailand and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” noted Hudson . “We wanted to showcase the success stories of the many US companies in the Kingdom over the years.”

On the second day of the Mission, the delegates participated in a Panel Discussion sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on investment opportunities and economic policies in Thailand, followed by a luncheon featuring keynote speaker Mr. Mingkwan Saengsuwan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce. Mission participants also meet with Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Finance Surapong Suebwonglee, Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Commerce Mingkwan Saengsuwan, Deputy Prime Minister & Industry Minister Suwit Khunkitti, Agriculture & Cooperatives Deputy Minister Sompat Kaewpichit, Information & Communication Technology Minister Dr. Man Pattanothai, Minister of Transport Santi Prompat and Minister of National Resources & Environment Mrs. Anongwan Thepsutin.

Laura Hudson stated, “The US business community looks forward to developing a strong relationship with the newly elected government in Thailand.  The large number of US companies that participated in this Mission is a reflection of the interest in and desire to understand the perspectives, priorities, goals, and help to work through the challenges to Thailand in this post-election era. “

The 24 companies in the delegation were: AIG, APCO Worldwide, Boeing, Chevron, The Coca-Cola Company, ConocoPhillips, FedEx Express, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Guardian Industries Corp, General Electric, GlaxoSmithKline, IBM, ITT Defense, JHPIEGO, Microsoft, Monsanto, Merck, Oracle, Pfizer, Philip Morris, Qualcomm, Star Group Limited and UPS.

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The US-ASEAN Business Council and affiliates are dedicated to strengthening bilateral and US ASEAN relations and building strong economic and commercial ties. Members of the Council include Fortune 1000 companies in support of promoting trade, investment, and technology cooperation, advancing US ASEAN relations through strong participation in public-private partnerships, and committing to development and corporate social responsibility. The Council's members are represented in diverse industries, including aerospace, agribusiness, automobiles, computers and information technology, consumer goods, energy exploration and development, express delivery services, financial services, health care and pharmaceuticals, media & entertainment, mining, software, and telecommunications.

For information on the US-ASEAN Business Council or general information visit www.us-asean.org.