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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024155

Housing association urges govt to allow it to hire more foreign workers

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2023

The Home Builder Association is calling on the government to make it easier for its members to hire construction workers from neighbouring countries, saying they are already facing a labour shortage and demand for houses is rising.

Association president Olarn Chanphu said on Thursday that the house construction business began recovering late last year and that it was expected to expand 6% this year to 13.25 billion baht.

It can take a few months to sign contracts to hire foreign workers and the slow process can disrupt the construction business, Olarn said.

“We would like the government to be lenient by allowing us to hire foreign workers before the contract signing process is completed,” he said.

More workers are needed since Thailand fully reopened following the Covid-19 pandemic, Olarn added.

He called on the government to approve recruitment of construction labourers from more countries beyond Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. Specifically, the government should approve the import of labourers from Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and Bangladesh, he said.

Olarn also said members of his association would not raise home prices for now because they had yet to deplete their stocks of construction materials.

Once their stocks are depleted, association members might raise their prices by 5% or more, depending on market prices of construction materials, he added.

Regarding the association’s proposal that the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) approve house construction applications online, Olarn said that Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt supports the proposal because it will streamline the process and reduce the risk of corruption.

The BMA will hold a seminar on January 25 to explain the request for online applications to build houses.

Olarn said he had been informed that the online application process would be limited to houses with no more than three floors that used no more than 300 square meters of space.

Association secretary-general Kosol Kowisut said a housing fair will be held in Muang Thong Thani’s Impact Hall from March 8 to 12.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024148

Govt tops revenue target with more cash from state and private enterprises

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2023

The government surpassed its revenue target by 13.3% for the first three months of fiscal 2023 (October to December 2022), a senior official at the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.

Pornchai Suravej, director of the ministry’s Fiscal Policy Office, said the government’s total revenue in the quarter was 633.139 billion, an increase of 73.586 billion from the target set in its 2023 Budget Act.

The revenue collected in the quarter also represented a more than 13% increase from the first quarter of FY2022, Pornchai added.

The Finance Ministry has four main revenue streams for collecting money for the state: State enterprises, the Revenue Department, the Customs Department, and other agencies (those with revolving funds).

Pornchai said revenues from state enterprises rose in the first quarter because some had been late delivering profits from the previous fiscal year.

A rise in corporate income taxes due to the economy’s expansion saw increased payments to the Revenue Department.

The Customs Department also collected back taxes following courts decided in its favour in cases where payments were disputed.

Other agencies also received state revenue. For example, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission received revenue from the sale of mobile phone bandwidth and auction of FM radio licenses.

Pornchai said the revenue from the Excise Department fell short of its target because the government cut the excise tax on diesel by 5 baht per litre to control retail prices.

The Finance Ministry’s revenue in the quarter – excluding that collected from the four revenue streams mentioned above – was about 40.175 billion baht.

This was 7.2% higher than its target and 7.3% higher than the same period in FY2022.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024142

Arkhom touts Thailand as sustainable investment oasis at World Economic Forum

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2023

Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith touted Thailand as a leading destination for sustainable investment as he addressed the global business elite at the World Economic Forum on Tuesday.

Arkhom was speaking at the “Asean’s Green Promise” seminar during the annual four-day forum of world economic and political leaders in Davos, Switzerland.

He told participants that Thailand is committed to the sustainability goals of becoming carbon neutral by 2050 and achieving zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2065.

Thailand announced both targets at the United Nations COP 27 climate conference last year in Egypt.

“To achieve this, Thailand has pushed forward the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) economy model to promote sustainable business operations across public and private sectors,” he said.

“We have also provided sustainable finance solutions, including issuing sustainability bonds, and allowing foreign companies to issue sustainability debt securities in baht currency.”

Following the seminar, Arkhom held talks with Visa Inc’s president Ryan McInerney to explore ways of using digital technology in Thailand’s taxation and payment system.

He also met with Telenor Group’s CEO Sigve Brekke to discuss future investment in Thailand’s telecom industry.

Earlier on Tuesday, the finance minister participated in the “Travelling Again, Differently” seminar, where he revealed Thailand’s successful formula to reopen for tourism in the face of Covid-19, using a sandbox programme and the “5F strategy” of Food, Fashion, Festival, Fighting, and Film.

He also mentioned that Thailand is considering measures to promote sustainable aviation fuel to fulfil the country’s environmental goals.

The World Economic Forum runs until Friday.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024141

FTI predicts growth in 17 industries will drive Thai economic rebound in 2023

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2023

The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) expressed confidence that Thailand’s economic recovery will continue this year as the Covid-19 situation improves, prompting higher domestic consumption and a tourism rebound.

The tourism sector is expected to welcome at least 20 million foreign arrivals this year thanks to pent-up demand during Covid-19, China lifting travel restrictions, and government measures to boost tourism, said FTI vice president Kriangkrai Thiannukul on Wednesday.

Exports this year are slowing in line with the slumping global economy. However, benefits of free trade agreements under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and new FTAs with countries in the Middle East would help keep the Thai export sector afloat this year, he said.

The FTI estimates that 17 Thai industrial sectors will enjoy substantial growth this year, namely mechanical and metallurgical, automotive parts and components, digital, sugar, medical equipment, electricity generation, renewable energy, furniture, pharmaceutical, automotive assembly, petroleum refinery, metal casting, roofing and equipment, steel, food and beverage, printing and packaging, and environmental management.

Factors contributing to industrial growth in 2023 are Board of Investment (BOI) investment privileges, especially in industries related to the new and BCG or Bio-Circular-Green economy; baht balancing to benefit both importers and exporters; government investment in infrastructure; and rising private consumption.

Potential factors that could hamper industrial growth this year include global inflation and a continued rise of energy prices, fluctuations in food prices, rising interest rates that affect business costs, and the possibility of recession and trade war among major economies.

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