Thailand has come fourth in the top-five countries where most fake goods originate, according to a new study by the OECD. China takes first place, followed by Turkey, Singapore, Thailand and India.
China takes the majority share with 63 percent of the estimated half-a-trillion dollar market for imports of counterfeit and pirated goods, says the OECD (Organisation Economic Cooperation and Development) and the European Union’s Intellectual Property Office.
Chinese-mad products accounted for 63.2 percent of all seizures of fake goods globally, while second placed Turkey’s share was just 3.3 percent. Singapore, Thailand and India stood at 1.9 percent, 1.6 percent and 1.2 percent respectively.
Countries hardest hit by the global trade in fake goods in include the US (in first place), followed by Italy, France, Switzerland and Japan rounding out the top five.
“Imports of counterfeit and pirated goods are worth nearly half a trillion dollars a year, or around 2.5 per cent of global imports, with US, Italian and French brands the hardest hit and many of the proceeds going to organised crime”, the OECD said about the study that takes into account the latest available figures up until 2013.
The study values imported fake goods worldwide at USD 461 billion in 2013, compared with total imports in world trade of USD 17.9 trillion. “Up to five per cent of goods imported into the European Union are…
