Traders in Hpa-An, the Karen State capital, told DVB that cargo shipments from Thailand have slowed down since the regime increased patrols for “illegal” goods entering the country.
“Hpa-An and Myawaddy [traders] source their supplies from Thailand. So they are hurt first when there’s a crackdown,” a Hpa-An trader told DVB on the condition of anonymity. Myawaddy is located 140 miles (225 km) east of Hpa-An and is across from Mae Sot, Tak Province of Thailand.
Regime Deputy Prime Minister Soe Win called for “accelerating the action to seize more smuggled goods” and stop unlicensed cargo vehicles from making deliveries on Feb. 27.
The Southeastern Regional Military Command (RMC) based in Mawlamyine, the Mon State capital, ordered the seizure of 359 cargo vehicles in Hpa-An on March 5. It alleged that they were transporting illegal goods to armed resistance groups along the Myanmar-Thailand border.
Over 200 seized cargo vehicles were released before March 10, while the remaining 159 trucks are still being held by regime authorities due to their alleged connection to armed resistance groups.
The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) told DVB that the KNU/KNLA Peace Council was the sole armed group responsible for transporting illegal cargo from Thailand into Myanmar.
Several different armed pro- and anti-regime groups operate between Myawaddy and Hpa-An. Traders blamed the black market trade on the “unfavourable” exchange rates set by the regime Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM).
The CBM approved the Thai baht (THB) as a permissible currency for international payments and settlement transactions on Aug. 14, 2023. Exporters are required to convert 25 percent of their earnings into Myanmar kyat (MMK) at the CBM rates.
But, the CBM exchange rate is set at 1 THB for 58 MMK, which is significantly lower than the black market rate of 1 THB for 130 MMK. “The trading at Myawaddy has ground to a halt,” a trader from Myawaddy told DVB.
Smuggled and illegal commodities worth over 458 billion MMK ($102 million USD) were seized from January 2022 to January 2025, according to the regime Illegal Trade Eradication Steering Committee.
