FTI wants government to continue stimulus packages amid fragile economic situation
Thailand's industrial community is urging the government to give people a new round of stimulus packages as New Year's gifts.
Montri Mahaplerkpong, vice president of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), said at a press conference on Wednesday that the country is still fragile so the government should support domestic consumption as a buffer against economic slowdown and mild inflation.
However, he believes that for the stimulus package to be effective the minimum spending limit should be raised and the rights expanded to cover more people.
"For example, the ‘Khon La Krueng phase 6’ [co-payment subsidy] should be raised to a minimum of 3,000 baht, while the number of people eligible for the ‘Rao Tiew Duay Gan’ [We Travel Together] scheme should be increased to 2 million," Montri said.
He also proposed that the government reduce the cost of "float time" (Ft) in the electricity bill from January to April 2023.
The goal is to reduce the cost burden on entrepreneurs in a volatile economy while also keeping Thailand competitive with other countries.
The suggestion was made during the October 2022 release of the Thailand Industry Sentiment Index (TISI). The most recent report demonstrates strong confidence in the country's industries, as every factor of the index improved, including total orders, total sales volume, production volume, operating costs, and profits.
The TISI was 93.1 in October 2022, up from 91.8 in September and rising for the fifth month in a row. The government's decision to downgrade Covid-19 from a serious infectious disease to a contagious disease aided the rise.
In addition, the industrial sector expanded in tandem with the recovery of domestic consumption and the tourism industry. In the export sector, trading partners began to pre-order products for delivery at the end of the year, reflecting the previous month's increase in the orders index and overall sales.
Meanwhile, the cost confidence index improved as a result of the government's energy measures, and the chip shortage problem began to improve.
However, the month's negative factors included flooding in many provinces which damaged agricultural areas, reduced farmers’ income, and impeded transport, affecting the construction sector. Furthermore, small and medium-sized entrepreneurs are concerned about rising interest rates on loans, as well as an unstable global economy.
The survey, conducted in October 2022, of 1,310 enterprises from the FTI's 45 industry sectors, revealed that the most concerning factors for entrepreneurs were fuel prices and loan interest rates.
Other factors, such as the global economy, the domestic economy, the political situation, the exchange rate, and the pandemic situation all contributed to easing enterprises' concerns.
Montri said that the TISI is expected to fall in the next three months due to concerns about the global economic slowdown and geopolitical threats, particularly the Russian-Ukrainian war, which poses a risk to Thailand's exports.
