Thailand News - Corona - By Ola J. - Palmtree

by Natthaphon Sangpolsit

BANGKOK (NNT) - As the government prepares to declare Covid-19 an endemic disease in July, authorities are seeking to ease travel restrictions in tandem with the policy in the hopes of attracting more tourists to Thailand.

Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Governor Yuthasak Supasorn stated that the TAT may cut its revenue and arrival target for 2022 as a result of the Russian-Ukraine crisis, which has resulted in an increase in inflation and oil costs. The agency will wait until the end of this month before providing a new tourism forecast for this year.

The TAT has set a goal of 1.28 trillion baht in tourism revenue for 2022, with 626 billion baht from 10 million international arrivals and 656 billion baht from domestic trips.

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In regard to the government's plan to declare Covid-19 endemic in July, the TAT governor said further relaxations have been discussed, with one of them being the suspension of the Thailand Pass. However, he stated that RT-PCR testing protocols will continue to be used to restrict the number of Covid-19 cases in the country. He advised the government to implement regulations and policies from other countries that would allow Thailand to maintain its tourism competitiveness.

The TAT's plan to ease travel restrictions will be proposed at the next meeting of the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) on March 18, 2022.

Meanwhile, the TAT governor stated that the agency will follow the CCSA's judgment on whether or not the upcoming Songkran holiday festivities will be suspended. He said the agency will promote marketing strategies to boost tourism if the CCSA allows celebrations for the upcoming holidays.

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Russia's invasion of Ukraine could cost the Thai economy 245 billion baht and hinder economic growth this year, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce estimated.

According to UTCC President Thanavath Phonvichai, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has a direct impact on trade and tourism between Thailand and both countries, while the increase in energy prices will affect the market and the country's inflation rate.

The UTCC believes that the crisis will cost the economy around 244.7 billion baht and slow the country's growth to around 2-3% if the conflict continues throughout the year.

The UTCC president is concerned that Thailand will enter a period of stagnation and inflation due to the conflict and various factors such as the spread of the coronavirus omicron variant.

However, he stated that there are numerous unpredictable variables and that it is too early to draw such a negative conclusion. Therefore, the UTCC will maintain its economic growth prediction from November and will wait some time before issuing a new revision, possibly in April.

The UTCC president said that the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the world economy is projected to last 1-3 years and the situation remains difficult to predict.

The prolonged conflict could increase global crude oil prices to US$200-$300 a barrel, which would severely affect every economy in the world.

Citing these possibilities, he stated that the government must select appropriate stimulus measures to prevent the economy from contracting while keeping the foreign exchange rate at 32.5-33 baht a dollar to ensure Thailand's competitiveness in international trade.