Officials are considering cancelling the next phase of the government's domestic tourism stimulus campaign, after multiple cases of fraud emerged. To date, over 200 people have been prosecuted for corruption in the domestic travel campaign, as well as in other government stimulus schemes. The Tourism Authority of Thailand says that, in conjunction with the Tourism and Sports Ministry, it has filed a police report against more than 500 hotels and other businesses.
The discovery of the fraud cases had prompted officials to postpone the addition of another 1 million discounted hotel rooms, a decision that has already impacted bookings for the New Year period. However, Nation Thailand reports that, according to a source close to the "We Travel Together" (Khon La Khrueng) scheme, the plan may end up dropped altogether. The issuing of additional 600 baht and 900 baht food and travel vouchers has also been postponed.
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is said to be furious over the reports of corruption, ordering the authorities to punish those involved, and calling on the public to cooperate in bringing them to justice.
"Solving the problem of corruption is not just the responsibility of the state. All parties must cooperate – givers, receivers and service providers. They must help each other by providing information so that we can arrest these fraudsters."
The PM says the travel stimulus scheme was introduced to help struggling hotels and other businesses in the tourism sector. He says finding the budget for such campaigns was a challenge, without having to see the schemes end in corruption.
SOURCE: Nation Thailand
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Thailand
Bank of Thailand says being on US currency "watchlist" won't have a "material impact"
Published
21 hours agoon
Thursday, December 17, 2020
Thailand being added to the United States Treasury's "watchlist" for suspected currency manipulation won't impact foreign trade and investment too much, the Bank of Thailand says.
Now that Thailand is on the "monitoring list," US government says it will keep "close attention" on the country's currency practices to determine if any measures are intended to gain an unfair advantage in foreign trade. Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith says it's "not a worry at the moment."
"It's still a monitoring list and we don't know what actions they might take. In handling the baht, it should not have any impact as the central bank is taking care of it."
The Bank of Thailand says there was no intention to use the exchange rate to gain an unfair advantage, the bank's assistant governor Chantavarn Sucharitakul said in a statement.
"At this stage, the assessment is not expected to have a material impact on Thailand's international trade, as well as the prospect for foreign direct investment into Thailand. Similarly, such assessment does not impede the ability of the BoT to fulfill its mandate on macroeconomic policies to safeguard domestic stability."
SOURCE: Reuters
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Thailand
Thailand on US Treasury's "watchlist" for suspected currency manipulation
Published
1 day agoon
Thursday, December 17, 2020
Thailand is now on the United States Treasury's "monitoring list" for suspected currency manipulation, unfair policies to gain an advantage in international trade.
Vietnam and Switzerland were both labeled currency manipulators in the US Treasury's recent report "Macroeconomic and Foreign Exchange Policies of Major Trading Partners of the United States." Along with Thailand, the Treasury also added Taiwan and India to their watchlist which includes China, Japan, Korea, Germany, Italy, Singapore and Malaysia.
US Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said in a press release that the department will take a "strong step today to safeguard economic growth and opportunity for American workers and businesses."
"Treasury will follow up on its findings with respect to Vietnam and Switzerland to work toward eliminating practices that create unfair advantages for foreign competitors."
To be labelled a currency manipulator, a country must meet all 3 criteria under the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015:
- A more than $20 billion USD bilateral trade surplus with the US
- Foreign currency intervention exceeding 2% of GDP
- A global currency account surplus exceeding 2% of GDP
Thailand met 2 of the 3 criteria, putting the country on the US Treasury's watchlist. According to the report, Thailand has a material account surplus and a significant bilateral trade surplus.
Strike 1…
Thailand's run current account surpluses since the 1998 Asian financial crisis. Between 1998 and 2019, the surpluses averaged at 4% of the GDP. In 2019, the account surplus reached 7%. With the collapse of tourism receipts, brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, the current account surplus moderated to 6% of GDP.
Strike 2…
This year, Thailand's bilateral goods trade surplus with the US continued to grow, reaching $22 billion USD and exceeding the limit set by the US Treasury.
"Thailand should allow the baht to appreciate to help reduce its large and durable external surpluses. The authorities should also take steps to reduce Thailand's external imbalances through policies that encourage private investment, reduce precautionary saving, and promote greater openness in domestically oriented sectors."
To read the US Treasury's report, click HERE.
SOURCES: Reuters | US Treasury
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Economy
Ministry investigating multiple cases of corruption in government's co-payment scheme
Published
3 days agoon
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
The government's "Let's Go Halves" (Khon La Khrueng) co-payment stimulus campaign has fallen foul of 100s of incidents of fraud, according to the Finance Ministry. Under the scheme, the government subsidises 50% of the cost of food, drink, and other products, up to a maximum of 150 baht per person per day, capped at 3,000 baht per person for the duration of the campaign.
However, the Finance Ministry says it is currently investigating around 700 cases of corruption, with suspects caught either during the application process or being reported by members of the public. According to a Nation Thailand report, the exact nature of the corruption is not clear, but it's understood to involve both businesses and individuals.
Last week, the government called on Thai people to help end corruption, with PM Prayut Chan-o-cha urging citizens to put the good of society above their own self-interest. In addition to the corruption uncovered in the co-payment scheme, the Tourism and Sports Ministry has received similar complaints in relation to the domestic tourism stimulus campaign.
Meanwhile, officials say phase 2 of the co-payment scheme will launch tomorrow, with another 5 million people eligible to participate. The scheme is open to Thai nationals who are over the ago of 18 and not welfare card holders.
There are currently around 970,000 businesses registered under the scheme, and over 9.5 million individuals. To date, total spending under the scheme stands at 43 billion baht, 22 billon of which is from members of the public, with a top-up of a further 21.1 from the government.
SOURCE: Nation Thailand
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