Government Spokeswoman Narumon Pinyosinwat said that this means those who will get the Bt50,000 cash rebate from the campaign would not have to take the amount into calculation for tax payment.

The Cabinet announced this campaign last month to reduce home-purchase costs.

To be eligible, the buyer must have a monthly salary not exceeding Bt100,000 and included in the Revenue Department’s tax database of around 100,000 individuals under this category.

The campaign will end on March 31, 2020.

According to Finance Ministry spokesman Lavaron Sangsnit, the number of people registering for the privilege in the Baan Dee Mee Down project yesterday (December 11) was 40,906. Wednesday was the first day of registration.

Early this month the Cabinet approved the Finance Ministry’s proposed regulations to waive personal income taxon the financial privilege given to registered consumers, under the government’s economic stimulus package “Eat, Shop, Spend”.

This means the Bt1,000 handout and the ‘cash-back’ amount will not come into calculation for tax payment.

He said that the Thai economy would not enter into a recession and could continue its growth momentum. The ministry has forecast a 3-per cent growth next year.

He added that state enterprises had been told to accelerate budget spending in the last quarter.

If needed be, the government is ready to introduce additional stimulus packages next year, he said.

The Prayut Chan-o-cha administration has launched stimulus packages for many sectors, from real estate to tourism.

He said  the key factor in boosting the economy was to raise the confidence of consumers and investors.

In a related matter, S&P Global Ratings on December 11 revised its outlook on Thailand’s sovereign credit rating to positive from stable.

At the same time, it affirmed its ‘BBB+’ long-term and ‘A-2’ short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings, and its ‘A-‘ long-term and ‘A-2’ short-term local currency ratings on Thailand.

Governing Council members expect to talk about the topic informally at dinner on Wednesday, a day before their policy meeting under new President Christine Lagarde, the people said, asking not to be named as such deliberations are private. An ECB spokesman declined to comment.

While there’s no expectation of an imminent decision, the symbolism of the debate on the eve of Lagarde’s first interest-rate decision shows how far she is willing to shake up the ECB by embracing modern-day challenges, as she has with climate change. It’s another signal that her upcoming strategic review could augur a radical overhaul of the two-decade-old institution.

Lagarde has long argued that central banks should consider the merits of issuing their own digital currency. In her previous job as head of the International Monetary Fund, she said it could support public goals such as financial inclusion, consumer protection and payment privacy.

The idea has gained momentum in recent years, spurred in part by the rise of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Facebook Inc.’s plans this year for a global digital currency sparked a backlash among governments, but also fueled the debate that public authorities risk being left behind as consumers turn to private-sector initiatives that skirt the traditional banking system.

The ECB said last week that it’ll develop its own digital currency if the private sector can’t make cross-border payments faster and cheaper, arguing that technological innovation is quickly transforming how retail payments are made. In a document prepared for the European Parliament, the central bank said it is analyzing the situation and will be ready to respond if needed.

The People’s Bank of China is already working on a digital currency and the Bank for International Settlements, a hub for monetary cooperation, published a survey this year showing most central banks are considering the implications of doing so. BIS head Agustin Carstens said last week that they “have a responsibility to be at the cutting edge of the debate.”

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has gone so far as to suggest that a global central bank digital currency might one day replace the dollar as the international reserve currency.

Still, there’s also plenty of skepticism. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said only last week that he and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell don’t see a need to create a Fed digital currency for at least the next five years. Powell previously told a lawmaker that the Fed is studying the costs and benefits of such a move.

Within the euro zone, the Dutch central bank carried out two cryptocurrency experiments in 2015, finding that drawbacks included industry fragmentation and self-interest among financial incumbents. In 2016, Germany’s Bundesbank and the stock exchange tested blockchain — the technology underlying cryptocurrencies — for transferring and settling securities and cash, concluding that the process was too expensive and slow.

Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann has said there is no need for a central bank digital currency for the broad public. He warned it could even weaken financial stability, as people might cause a bank run in a crisis by rapidly shifting their cash to the safer home of a central-bank account.

It also affirmed our ‘BBB+’ long-term and ‘A-2’ short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings, and its ‘A-‘ long-term and ‘A-2’ short-term local currency ratings on Thailand, according to its statement issued on Wednesday.

Its transfer and convertibility assessment remains ‘A’.

The positive outlook reflects its assessment that political uncertainty in Thailand has begun to ease with the return of an elected government.

With progress in implementing national reforms and strategy plans, it believes policy continuity and political stability will improve.

It may raise the rating over the next 24 months if there are clearer signs the key political players are committed to the current political framework and that abrupt and unexpected political changes become unlikely.

In this scenario, it expects the government will continue to implement key reforms and strategies according to national plans, despite the complexities of operating in a multiparty parliamentary democracy.

It could revise the outlook to stable if pressure on the current political process builds substantially, resulting in increasing social tensions and uncertainty that raise the likelihood of abrupt political changes.

In addition, if growth is persistently weaker than what it has currently forecast, it could also revise the outlook to stable.

Apart from the usual fierce competition from local businesses, the festival found growing consumer interest in high-quality imported foods. Thai brand Chocky, which has partnered with Beijing Tian Fu Ying International Trade Company, emerged the No 1 seller in the wafer category of Tmall from October 21 to November 11.

According to Frost & Sullivan, the sales volume of China’s snack food industry reached Bt4.4 billion in 2018.

According to the General Administration of Customs China, the sales volume of imported foods in China grew at a compounded annual growth rate of 17.7 per cent from 2009 to 2018, and reached Bt2.15 billion last year.

With the continuous growth of Thailand’s tourism market, Thai snacks have become the dark horse in 2019 “China Double 11”. There are three reasons why Thai food represented by Chocky is widely loved by Chinese consumers. Firstly, Thai enterprises focus on food quality in export. Secondly, many enterprises are Chinese descendants, so they know how to customise their products based on Chinese taste while retaining Thai food’s distinguished features. Thirdly, Chocky has partnered with Tian Fu Ying International Trade Co, who has been deeply engaged in the food market for over 10 years, and continuously promoted Chocky online and offline during the past two years — this is a key factor in this old Thailand snack brand becoming popular in China.

The rapid growth of Chocky in China reflects the growing demand for quality imported food. According to Supra, director of the Guangzhou office of the international trade promotion office of the Ministry of Commerce of Thailand, the Chinese snack market has great potential and Thai enterprises should fully seize the opportunity. With the Belt and Road Initiative and strong online e-commerce channels in China, China-Thailand trade will be further strengthened in the future.

In a supplement to its Asian Development Outlook 2019 Update released in September, ADB now expects gross domestic product (GDP) in the region to expand 5.2 per cent in both 2019 and 2020, down from the September forecast of 5.4 per cent growth this year and 5.5 per cent next year.

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“While growth rates are still solid in developing Asia, persistent trade tensions have taken a toll on the region and are still the biggest risk to the longer-term economic outlook. Domestic investment is also weakening in many countries, as business sentiment has declined,” said ADB chief economist Yasuyuki Sawada. “Inflation, on the other hand, is ticking up on the back of higher food prices, as African swine fever has raised pork prices significantly.”

The supplement forecasts inflation of 2.8 per cent in 2019 and 3.1per cent in 2020, up from the September prediction that prices would rise 2.7 per cent this year and next.

In East Asia, growth in the PRC is now expected at 6.1 per cent this year and 5.8 per cent next year due to trade tensions and a slowdown in global activity coupled with weaker domestic demand, with family wallets being hit by pork prices that have doubled relative to a year ago. Growth could accelerate, however, should the US and the PRC come to an agreement on trade, the report says. In September, ADB forecast GDP growth of 6.2 per cent in 2019 and 6.0 per cent in 2020.

Hong Kong, China, already in technical recession, will see severe downward pressures persist possibly into 2020. The economy is now expected to contract 1.2 per cent this year and grow 0.3 per cent next year.

In South Asia, India’s growth is now seen at a slower 5.1 per cent in fiscal year 2019 as the foundering of a major non-banking financial company in 2018 led to a rise in risk aversion in the financial sector and a credit crunch. Also, consumption was affected by slow job growth and rural distress aggravated by a poor harvest. Growth should pick up to 6.5 per cent in fiscal year 2020 with supportive policies. In September, ADB forecast India’s GDP to grow 6.5 per cent in 2019 and 7.2 per cent in 2020.

In Southeast Asia, many countries are seeing continued export declines and weaker investment, and growth forecasts have been downgraded for Singapore and Thailand. GDP growth is expected to slow in the Pacific with activity in Fiji, the sub-region’s second largest economy after Papua New Guinea, expected to be more subdued than previously anticipated.

Central Asia is the only sub-region where prospects look a little brighter now than in September, largely thanks to increased public spending in Kazakhstan, the region’s largest economy. Central Asia is now forecast to grow 4.6 per cent in 2019, up from the previous prediction for expansion of 4.4 per cent . The forecast for 2020 is for growth of 4.5 per cent . Kazakhstan’s economy is seen expanding by 4.1 per cent this year and 3.8 per cent next year.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. In 2018, it made commitments of new loans and grants amounting to $21.6 billion.