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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40015024

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha asked truck operators on Thursday to be understanding, saying the government has run out of money after capping the diesel oil price at THB30 for months.

Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana quoted Prayut as saying he would like truck operators to understand that the government cannot afford to continue with the present diesel price cap after April 30.

Thanakorn said Prayut was referring to a demand by Land Transportation Association of Thailand members, who rallied in front of Government House briefly on Wednesday, that the government continue to cap the diesel price at THB30.

Thanakorn quoted Prayut as explaining that the government had spent tens of billions of baht from the Oil Fund until it had dried up. The government had also spent all of the loans borrowed for pegging the retail diesel price.

“As a result, this is the time everybody needs to cooperate and the government will try its best to take care of all sectors,” the spokesman quoted the prime minister as saying.

He also quoted Prayut as emphasising that the government would carefully use the remaining money to try to mitigate the impact of the oil price crisis.

Prayut said the Oil Fund had earlier used several measures to try to keep oil prices from rising and the government had also reduced the diesel excise tax by THB3 per litre to try to keep the price low.

Thanakorn said the government would start cutting the subsidy for diesel oil from May 1. The retail price would be adjusted to THB32 on the first day and be increased step by step until it reaches a cap of THB35. Without any subsidy, the price would be THB40 per litre, the spokesman pointed out.

He said the Fuel Fund Executive Committee and the Energy Ministry are now drafting measures to help blunt the impact from the rising diesel price. Other government agencies will also come up with solutions.

“The government will introduce measures to bring down manufacturing costs to minimise the impact on low-income people. I affirm that the prime minister and his government understand the grievances of all sectors and we will try our best to tackle the woes,” the spokesman added.

Published : April 28, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40015017

Kla party leader Korn Chatikavanij speculated that the reason why the price of bottled palm oil has increased so heavily is because Indonesia has banned palm oil exports.

Korn wrote on his Facebook page on Thursday that Indonesia, the world’s biggest palm oil manufacturer and exporter, had banned exports of the oil to keep prices down for its citizens, causing the price elsewhere to increase.

He said it was good news for farmers but not for consumers because the price of consumer products is already high.

Korn pointed out that the palm oil price increased drastically as sunflower oil was in shortage due to Ukraine being forced to halt manufacturing, while Indonesia had stopped exporting palm oil.

According to experts, the cost of bottled palm oil should be 75 baht. It is currently 64 baht.

Korn said manufacturers are able to retain the same price for now because there are still bottles left at earlier prices and they had gained a lot of profit in the past.

If the situation returns to normal quickly, the problem is not worrying, he noted. However, if the situation prolongs or worsens, the government needs to do something to help consumers.

Korn suggested the government use its reserve budget to insure the palm price for farmers is 4 baht per kg. The government could use this budget to compensate citizens to lower their burden, he wrote.

He said it’s not only money but also a question of health because Thais will have to reuse oil if the government allows the price of bottled palm oil to go too high.

“The world situation is always changing quickly. To manage the economy during these times, [the government] must not blink,” he added.

Published : April 28, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40015014

The Energy Ministry will announce on Thursday the new price structure for diesel oil that will be come into effect after the ministry ends the THB30 price cap.

The ministry will also announce details of price structure of other petrol varieties on Thursday.

The Energy Ministry decided to end the diesel price cap at THB30 per litre on April 30 as the Fuel Fund Executive Committee is running out of cash reserves.

The Cabinet had resolved to use the Oil Fund to subsidise half of the price above THB30. Currently, the real market price of diesel oil is about THB40 per litre, a source from the Energy Ministry said.

The source said the Oil Fund board has resolved to use a ladder price structure to minimise impact on the people once the THB30 cap is no longer used from May 1.

The source said the price is expected to be THB32 per litre when the global diesel price is about US$145 per barrel. The source added that the new price structure would cap diesel price at THB35 per litre.

The source said new diesel prices will be announced every week until it reaches the cap of THB35 per litre.

Published : April 28, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40015004

Thailand is expected to see 5.5 million tourists this year despite the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration scrapping the Test & Go scheme from May, Krungsri Research said on Wednesday.

It said the Russia-Ukraine war will affect tourists’ plans to visit Thailand, especially tourists from Russia and other European countries. The energy crisis due to the conflict would affect global economic recovery, it added.

“China is likely to maintain its international travel restrictions to contain the spread of Covid-19,” Krungsri Research said.

“Meanwhile, intensifying competition from other countries to grab a share of the foreign tourist market would limit the number of tourists visiting the Kingdom to 5.5 million, compared to 39.79 million before the Covid-19 pandemic,” it added.

Separately, the Public Debt Management Office said the government is still able to borrow around 1.3 trillion baht before public debt hits a ceiling of 70 per cent to gross domestic product.

The office said the government would conduct a public hearing from every sector in May to draw up a plan to achieve economic recovery amid the Covid-19 situation and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Currently, as much as 74 billion baht is available under a 500 billion baht loan act, while the government can use 60 billion from the central budget, of which up to 40 billion has been reserved for tackling crises.

Published : April 28, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40015002

The baht opened at 34.38 to the US dollar on Thursday, after surging to close at 34.31 on Wednesday.

The currency is expected to move between 34.30 and 34.45 on Tuesday, Krungthai Bank market strategist Poon Panichpibool predicted.

He said the risk-averse market coupled with the Covid-19 situation in China could add more downward pressure on the baht.

The baht was also pressured by dividend transactions and gold purchases as investors bought more of the precious metal as prices headed down.

Poon expected the Thai currency to fluctuate and likely test the resistance level of 34.40 to 34.50. However, it might be supported by foreign investors purchasing Thai assets this week. If they do not offload a large amount of Thai assets, the baht will not weaken much, Poon said.

He advised businesses to use hedging tools such as options to manage risks in the highly volatile currency market.

Published : April 28, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40014966

The Commerce Ministry asked operators to refrain from increasing product prices so that the burden won’t fall on consumers.

Commerce Ministry Jurin Laksanawisit said on Tuesday that guidelines to control product prices must take into consideration two factors – benefits to farmers and benefits to consumers.

However, the two factors contradict each other because farmers want palm prices to be as high as possible while consumers want the palm oil price to be low.

Therefore, he said, the ministry must “manage a balance” so both sides won’t be hit hard. Meanwhile, operators must also be able to conduct business profitably.

Jurin said the palm price is currently 9 to 10 baht per kg while the ministry should push for a 700 per cent increase in exports to achieve a better price. But consumers would have to pay a higher price if the cost increases, he noted.

“The ministry must find a way for operators to be able to continue their business with not too high a profit so consumers will not have to shoulder too much of a burden from the increasing palm oil price,” he said.

“One way is to reduce profit and the cost-retail price proportion, so the Commerce Ministry has come out with a price structure.”

The ministry is therefore asking operators not to charge higher than the regulated price.

The oil palm price per bottle on Monday was 62-65 baht or 64 per bottle on average. The price according to the structure is not more than 68-69 baht.

As for the increasing animal feed costs, he instructed the ministry’s permanent secretary to meet with animal feed farmers, livestock farmers and operators as they are yet to find a conclusion.

Animal feed farmers want the corn price to be as high as possible, while livestock farmers want the price to be low so pork, chicken and eggs don’t cost more.

As for the oil price, the National Energy Policy Committee is considering measures so the impact on the public would be as low as possible.

Meanwhile, the ministry on a case-by-case basis may allow a price increase of some of the 18 products and services it had put a price cap on, so that some manufacturing processes do not come to a halt.

Published : April 27, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40014965

The Energy Ministry has been instructed to explore more ways in which the diesel price can be subsidised, Energy Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow announced on Tuesday.

His statement came after the government said it would provide a 50 per cent subsidy on the diesel price exceeding 30 baht per litre from May 1. The present policy of capping the price at 30 baht per litre ends on April 30.

Supattanapong expected the oil fund to shell out up to 6 billion baht for the 50 per cent subsidy.

For example, if the diesel price is 40 baht per litre, the oil fund will pay 50 per cent of the extra 10 baht, so the price of each litre will be 35 baht at the pump, he explained.

Supattanapong said the Energy Ministry’s permanent secretary must check what the real diesel price is and how to reduce this price.

The permanent secretary would come up with a higher subsidy to reduce the diesel price to between 31 and 33 baht per litre, so it will not cause an impact on businesses, transport and motorists, he said.

“We will need to evaluate the situation in the next three months to get a clearer picture,” the minister pointed out.

“In the current situation, we have to check how we can allocate money, will this budget be enough and how the economy can recover,” he added.

Published : April 27, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40014961

The baht opened at 34.28 to the US dollar on Wednesday, the highest level in five years, after surging to close at 34.25 on Tuesday.

The currency is expected to move between 34.20 and 34.40 on Tuesday, Krungthai Bank market strategist Poon Panichpibool said.

Poon said the risk-averse market coupled with the Covid-19 situation in China could add more downward pressure on the baht.

The Thai currency has weakened past the expected resistance level, with both exporters and importers unsure of when to carry out transactions, so it might be volatile and weaken to test the new resistance level of 34.40, he said.

Meanwhile, gold purchases are rising as investors want to possess safe assets. This is adding pressure to the baht.

Poon advised businesses to use hedging tools such as options to manage risks in the present highly volatile currency market.

Published : April 27, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40014960

A group of Thai and Chinese experts, academics and entrepreneurs made a strong case for enhancing mutual support and collaboration to improve the fintech industry and help sustain growth in the digital economy era.

Ben Shenglin, dean of Zhejiang University International Business School, said during his opening speech that fintech is playing an increasingly major role in the current economy. In these few years, both government and private sectors from China and Thailand have progressively built the system and infrastructure needed for the development of the digital economy. Fintech is one of those efforts.

However, to sustain the growth of fintech, there is more work to be done to improve the overall ecosystem including technology, innovation, security and regulation. And one of the key success factors is more deep collaboration and data sharing between countries, he said.

“The aim of today’s forum is to discuss and find ways where both China and Thailand can work together to develop not only for the two countries but also for the whole region,” Ben Shenglin said.

Yang Hong, a former People’s Bank of China official, said Beijing has made fintech one of the pillars of the national development plan for the next three years. Although many things in the industry have improved, there are new challenges to handle, especially in security, privacy and regulation aspects.

Michael Sung, a professor at Zhejiang University International Business School, pointed out that working together means the chance to discover proper solutions. Both China and Thailand have to come up with high-quality technology, advanced affordable innovation, transparent regulation and a fair, accessible ecosystem for all.

Chonladet Khemarattana, president of Thai Fintech Association, accepted that the Thai fintech industry is a few steps behind when compared with China. The pain point is that the country’s digital development is only concentrated in urban areas and is with the big operators more than the smaller entrepreneurs. And fintech appears to be a key solution to that obstacle.

He added that apart from international cooperation and support, Thailand now needed to educate people about financial and digital literacy. Thai citizens have to be well-prepared for fintech and digital technology.

Archari Suppiroj, director of Fintech Department at the Bank of Thailand (BOT), said that in the past few years the government has focused on strengthening digital infrastructure along with educating people in order to add more players to help support the country’s competitiveness in the digital economy.

As for the cooperation with China, Archari said that BOT has some plans to launch a pilot testing programme of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in which China, as one of the world’s leading players in CBDC development and application, can help Thailand with some concrete operations.

After running a business in Thailand for many years, Yunna Wang, country leader in Thailand at Lianlian International, said Thai fintech has improved a lot but there are more areas needing improvement, particularly in the stability of infrastructure, data digitalisation and security aspect.

Pawee Jenweeranon, visiting scholar of ZIBS & Representative from the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University, added that improving fintech would help Thailand break out from a middle-income nation to a high-income country.

“We require an advanced ecosystem of digital, diffusion of technology, great foundation in infrastructure, supportive measures for the digital economy and accessible training programme for talents,” Pawee said.

Published : April 27, 2022

By : THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/business/40014944

Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawist was upbeat about the country’s export growth, saying the 19.5 per cent year-on-year surge in March was the highest in 30 years.

Jurin, who also doubles as a deputy PM, told the press on Tuesday that exports in March were worth US$28.86 million or about 922.313 million baht. This marked a 19.5 per cent growth compared to the same month last year and was the biggest expansion since 1991.

At the end of the first quarter, Thailand’s export value stood at $73.6 million or 2.4 billion baht, which was 14.9 per cent higher compared to the same period last year.

The minister credited the growth to cooperation between the Commerce Ministry and the private sector as well as the normalisation of Thailand’s ties with Saudi Arabia.

The top 10 markets with the highest exports in March were:

• Switzerland: 2,864.7%

• South Asia: 36.4%

• Asean: 34.8%

• Middle East: 29.5%

• United States: 21.5%

• United Kingdom: 14.5%

• South Korea: 14.5%

• Taiwan: 9.4%

• Canada: 9.2%

• European Union: 6.9%

Published : April 26, 2022

By : THE NATION