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#Written by David Tam, 1997. #
#davidkftam@netscape.net Copyright 1999#
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David Tam
Wednesday, January 20, 1997.
BUSINESS PRESS REVIEW
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Casella, Emilia. "Canadians take long view in Thailand", The Globe and Mail.
Friday, January 17, 1996. B6. ------------------
This article is about Challenger Surveys and Services Ltd., an
Edmonton-based company providing satellite imaging, surveying, and mapping.
Challenger is experiencing success in the foreign market of Thailand. Having
three years of experience in that country, Challenger is planning to sign its
second joint venture deal following Canada's trade mission to Thailand.
There are many obstacles involved in conducting business in Thailand.
Foreign ownership of land is prohibited, all joint ventures must have a 51%
Thai ownership, a minimum investment of $111,000 Canadian is required from each
individual in order to establish a foreign representative, and an additional
$200,000 to $300,000 is required to cover salary and benefits of each Canadian
employee.
From an accounting point of view, these requirements result in large
increases in fixed costs for companies. To realize financial success, a large
enough volume of sales must be generated to cover all fixed and variable costs.
Despite these financial difficulties, accounting standards have improved.
Twelve years ago, audited accounts could not be obtained because there were
often three accounts books. One was kept for the bankers, the revenue
department, and the company owners.
(
geocities.com/siliconvalley/campus/9640/2ndYear) (
geocities.com/siliconvalley/campus/9640) (
geocities.com/siliconvalley/campus) (
geocities.com/siliconvalley)