On top of this, he said, the container and semiconductor shortage problem is not getting any better.
Suphan cited a FTI January survey in which 1,335 operators in 45 industry groups were asked which factors worried them the most.
According to the survey:
- 70.1% were worried about the oil price
- 45.5% were concerned about the political situation in the country
- 43.8% had worries about the currency rate, and
- 42.6% were perturbed about loan interest rates.
The FTI gave the government four suggestions:
- Control inflation and solve the cost-of-living problem by cutting utility bills, reducing LPG gas prices, and increasing the budget for the “Khon La Khrueng” (Let’s Go Halves) campaign.
- Keep the diesel price below 30 baht per litre and clear up the material shortage or high-price problem to decrease manufacturing costs.
- Roll out economic stimulus measures to help the economy recover, including measures to assist businesses that have been affected by the Covid-19 crisis.
- Ease entry measures for foreign visitors by at least reducing the number of RT-PCR tests to only one under the Test & Go scheme and using Antigen Test Kits instead on the fifth day of arrival.