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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024164

JPMorgan sees Thai stocks as the most attractive in Southeast Asia

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2023

Strong recovery of Thailand’s tourism, with an expected influx of Chinese visitors, and strong domestic demand for consumer products have made the Thai stock market the most attractive in Southeast Asia, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co, an American multinational financial services company.

Jakkapun Pornpunnarath, JPMorgan’s head of Thai equity research, said that the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) has become the top pick for JPMorgan in Southeast Asia.

He pointed to robust trading of Thai stocks ahead of the next general election later this year and the strong operating performance of many listed companies.

The JPMorgan executive said that a strong Thai baht, growing in tandem with the tourism recovery, should enhance returns for equity investors.

Jakkapun was speaking in an interview with Bloomberg news agency, which published its report on Thursday.

JPMorgan estimated that Chinese tourists would help double Thailand’s tourism revenue to US$39 billion (1.36 trillion baht) this year, accounting for 6% of the country’s gross domestic product.
 

The multinational financial giant also predicted that as many as 26 million foreign tourists would come to Thailand this year, which is about 65% of the 40 million visitors who came to Thailand in 2019, the year before the global tourism industry was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to JPMorgan, the SET Index is likely to increase by 7% this year to reach a new high of 1,800 points.

In terms of sectors, JPMorgan remains overweight on consumer products, luxury goods, and healthcare.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024162

Thailand, Japan agree to boost agricultural cooperation

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2023

The agriculture ministers of Thailand and Japan agreed to have closer cooperation between the two countries during times of crisis when they held talks in Tokyo on Wednesday.

Thai Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives Chalermchai Sri-on and Japan’s State Minister of Agriculture of Forestry and Fisheries Nonaka Atsushi held wide discussions on food security, agriculture conferences, and imports.

In an effort to advance collaboration in food security, Chalermchai urged both nations to lend each other assistance during crisis.

Regarding closer cooperation, Chalermchai suggested that agriculture sectors in the region need to be more sustainable and rely on the framework of the Japan-Thailand High-Level Cooperation Dialogue on Agriculture and Food Industries (HLCD) meeting.

“The HLCD’s third meeting, set to be held later and hosted by Thailand’s Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, will give corporates from both nations a chance to give suggestions to the government sectors so as to boost trade between the two countries,” Chalermchai added. 

The Thai minister also called for easier import in both countries of profit crops, such as Kao Nam Pueng pomelo from Thailand and Japanese brown rice.

Both sides agreed to adopt a new economic partnership plan called “Measures for the achievement of Decarbonisation and Resilience with Innovation” (MeaDRI). 

“This is a good opportunity to strengthen cooperation in the agriculture sector between the two countries as well as to promote the expansion of regional connectivity. Thailand is ready to cooperate with the MeaDRI plan as it aligns with our policy and the Bio-Circular-Green Model,”  Chalermchai said.

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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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https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/economy/40024113

Thailand investment privileges jump 39% driven by FDI in EV, data centres

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2023

The Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) provided investment privileges for 2,119 projects worth 664.63 billion baht last year, said government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri on Wednesday.

The number of projects rose 41% from the previous year while the worth of privileges rose 39%.

The BOI attributed the jump in investment privilege applications to the improving Covid-19 situation that had restored economic activities and investments to almost pre-pandemic level.

The government also rolled out measures to promote key industries, including electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing, power generation, and data centre businesses, said Anucha.

The BOI said foreign companies accounted for 65% of investment privileges, worth a total 433.97 billion baht – a 36% rise from the previous year.

China was Thailand’s biggest foreign investor with 158 projects worth over 77.38 billion baht, or 15% of total foreign investment. Japan was second with 293 projects worth 50.76 billion baht, while the US was third with 33 projects worth 50.29 billion baht.

Industries attracting most foreign investment last year were electrical appliances, electronics, petrochemicals, chemicals, and automotive components.

“Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is confident that Thailand’s economy will continue to grow this year based on increasing confidence among Thai and foreign investors,” said Anucha. “The government is committed to upgrading the country’s industrial infrastructure and improving regulations to facilitate investment across various industries in a bid to recover our economy, promote employment and enhance the quality of life of all citizens.”

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