INVESTIGATE IMPORTANT FACTORS AND TRADE BARRIERS INFLUENCE PURCHASING DECISION OF IMPORTERS IN THAILAND ON BUYING STEEL INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS FROM CHINA

Abstract

The purposes of this research were investigate the important factors and trade barriers that influence the purchasing decisions of importers in Thailand when buying steel industrial products from China. The qualitative method was applied to gain in-depth information. The results of this research found that there are five important factors which grouped into product-oriented variables (price and quality) and service-oriented variables (suppliers’ relationships, delivery processes and shipping agents). From the finding, it showed that the main factor is the price while the quality is acceptable. Moreover, the result also showed that the importers are likely to deal with long term reliable suppliers who can help them resolve various complexities such as delivery process. Moreover, there are three trade barriers which are grouped into laws/regulation variables (import tariffs, complexities of customs procedures and government policies). The interviewees accepted import tariffs as a part of importation but some importers are likely to avoid these barriers through governmental policies (FTAs, Form E and BOI). These policies help importers pay less tax and this creates positive impact on importers' purchasing intention. Meanwhile, antidumping and safeguard laws impact negatively on importers due to the higher tariffs as well as the complexities of custom procedures also impact negatively to importers’ purchasing decisions. Therefore, importers are likely to utilize services from third party such as shipping companies for their conveniences.