Prayut to study 2024 budget with 4 economic agencies
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is scheduled to meet four economic agencies to discuss the budget for the 2024 fiscal year at Government House on Wednesday.
The four agencies are the Finance Ministry, the Bank of Thailand, the National Economics and Social Development Council and the Bureau of the Budget.
Chalermpol Phensoot, the Budget Bureau’s director, said he expects the Wednesday meeting to iron out details before the draft is proposed to the Cabinet next Tuesday.
Once the draft is approved, the bureau will finalise the budget before presenting it to the Cabinet again by May 16.
This is assuming the Parliament is not dissolved before the general election is held on May 7 as scheduled, he said.
The first draft of the 2024 budget had been approved by the Cabinet on December 27 at the amount of 3.35 trillion baht, which is 165 billion baht higher than the previous budget which stood at 3.19 trillion baht but will render a budget deficit of 593 billion baht.
The draft expects 2.76 trillion baht in government revenue (up 10.7% year on year), 3.36 trillion baht in government spending (up 5.2% year on year), and 1.18 trillion baht in outstanding public debt or 61.35% of the GDP.
The bureau believes that in 2024, Thailand’s GDP will expand by 3.3-4.3% with inflation in the range of 1-2% in line with global economic recovery, rising public consumption and full recovery of the tourism industry.
