By Madhusha Thavapalakumar The feasibility study on the proposed Sri Lanka-Thailand Free Trade Agreement (FTA), conducted by the Department of Commerce (DoC) in consultation with relevant stakeholders has been completed and sent to the Cabinet of Ministers. “The feasibility study was completed on 29 March and sent to the Cabinet for the Cabinet’s reference,” said Secretary to the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade S.T. Kodikara speaking to The Sunday Morning Business. The third round of negotiations of the Sri Lanka-Thailand FTA took place in Thailand earlier this month and the feasibility study was based on the outcomes of the three rounds. Kodikara said that as the feasibility study had been completed, the next round of FTA negotiations would be carried out towards the end of April in Colombo. Accompanied by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade, 9 to 12 subcommittees representing multiple departments in relation to the agreement joined the negotiations to discuss their requirements. Following this, the Ministry temporarily halted the continuation of negotiations to decide whether to move on to the next round of negotiations or to make further amendments to what has been negotiated thus far, based on the findings of the study. Sri Lanka and Thailand launched discussions for the proposed FTA in July last year. The first round of negotiations was held on 13 July 2018 in Colombo with the participation of Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-Cha. Thailand hosted the second round of negotiations in September 2018. However, further negotiations were postponed amidst the political crisis that engulfed Sri Lanka in late October. Following the resolution of the crisis, the third round took place in March. Thailand recently held voting for its general election, but even a week after the election, the first since the coup of 2014, it remains unclear which party could form a government. On Thursday, the Thai Election Commission released the final vote count, showing the pro-military party, which backs Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-Cha, had won the popular vote. However, the count has been marred by concerns over voting irregularities and official results are due only by 9 May. However, the FTA with Sri Lanka is not expected to be affected as of now, irrespective of which party assumes power. Sri Lanka is Thailand’s fourth-largest trading partner in South Asia. Thailand’s main exports to Sri Lanka include dried fish, woven cloth, sugar, automobile parts, and para-rubber while Sri Lanka’s main exports to Thailand are jewellery, silver bars, gold, plant products, aquatic animals, and electrical parts. With regard to trade and investment relations, both countries reaffirmed its commitment to increase bilateral trade volume to $ 1.5 billion by the year 2020, with annual trade value between the two countries recorded as $ 512.74 million in 2017. Both sides have also agreed on the need to enhance bilateral investment flows. Thailand is also one among the 39 countries which were recently granted visa relaxation by the Ministry of Tourism Development, Christian Religious Affairs, and Wildlife to achieve the targeted tourist arrivals of 2019.