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khunPer

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    Phuket officials ban alcohol in restaurants, ‘social activities’ ‒ again

    in Phuket News

    Posted

    3 minutes ago, Mickeymaus said:

    You report a lot of numbers here. But all your numbers don't show how the health care situation is. And Thailand has reached at many locations the limit of what they can handle. 

    Thailand have up till very recently placed everybody that tested positive in hospital care, during 2021 asymptomatic cases primary in field hospitals. Other countries mainly use home quarantine, so-called self-isolation, instead for asymptomatic cases.

     

    You can for example read moire about self isolation in UK HERE and HERE.
     

    How is the situation in for example UK or Norway?
    And how would it be if all active cases were hospitalized...?

    Large anti-government demonstration in Bangkok on Sunday

    in Bangkok News

    Posted

    1 hour ago, KhaoYai said:

    My family will do any work - there is no work available.  If you believe the government's unemployment figures, you'll believe anything.  They have been putting out fake figures on many issues since the pandemic began. Didn't you find it strange that for the first year, despite the lack of 40 million tourists, the economy hardly seemed to suffer?  Now, for whatever reason, the economy has finally (officially) taken a dive and continues to sink. 

     

    I wouldn't try to quote figures because I don't know and I doubt they are available but whether its sensible or not, a hell of a lot of working class Thais don't pay social security.

     

    I tend to ignore official figures, they're usually optimistic whatever the country but I'd suggest that's even moreso in Thailand.  I put my trust in what I see and what I hear - in other words real world, not government BS. 

     

    Solely looking at my Thai family, 6 adults are out of work and my wife will also be out of work too if the current restrictions are still in place when she returns to Thailand.  Her business has been over 50% down for most of the last year. These things are not my opinion, they are a fact and are a direct result of the pandemic.  From what my wife tells me I'd suggest that many thousands of families are in the same position.

     

    That's obvious but its no comfort to people with no money right now. The fact is that thousands of businesses have had to close or lay people off. My brother cannot carry on with his business because the events he usually caters for are banned. Business owners are not getting any assistance and vast numbers of the staff that have lost their jobs are not getting any help from the government and haven't for months.

     

    All of this has been taking place whilst the Thai government makes announcements about Moon Missions, infrastructure projects etc. - they live in cloud cuckoo land  They have totally mishandled the situation and its getting worse.

     

    Hence the protests.

    I'm sorry for you family.

     

    Official statistics from around the World is however the best results to judge facts from - what you see, and what I see, with our eyes might however be extremely individual, also our opinions...????

    Phuket officials ban alcohol in restaurants, ‘social activities’ ‒ again

    in Phuket News

    Posted

    2 hours ago, Mickeymaus said:

    Do you understand the situation correctly? It is sad that people don't have income anymore. But they should be happy to be still without health problems. There are numbers every day. Let's take todays number of more than 20000. Now multiply this with seven days of a week. Then we have 140000 people. The hospitals cannot handle this anymore. It is a much bigger problem than that some people might not have an income anymore. 

    This thread is to my understanding about Phuket's Sandbox, not Thailand as a whole.

     

    Compared to many other countries Thailand as a whole is not that bad, but of course bad enough...
     

    Statistics from 31st July (you can find daily updates on WorldOmeter HERE, active cases today 4th August is 3,015 per million)...

     

    Thailand...

    total cases per 1 million: 8,534

    deaths per 1 million: 69

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 2,864

     

    vs.

     

    Denmark (my own "safe" Scandinavian home country)...

    total cases per 1 million: 54,362

    deaths per 1 million: 438

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 1,916

     

    Germany...

    total cases per 1 million: 44,901

    deaths per 1 million: 1,096

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 350

     

    Norway (where a Norwegian man in another article today is escaping to)...

    total cases per 1 million: 25,146

    deaths per 1 million: 146

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 8,728

     

    Sweden...

    total cases per 1 million: 108,196

    deaths per 1 million: 1,438

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 923

     

    UK...

    total cases per 1 million: 85,407

    deaths per 1 million: 304

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 17,622

     

    USA...

    total cases per 1 million: 107,143

    deaths per 1 million: 1,889

    active cases adjusted to per 1 million: 16.233

     

     

    • Thanks 1

    Large anti-government demonstration in Bangkok on Sunday

    in Bangkok News

    Posted

    6 hours ago, KhaoYai said:

    Perhaps there are 2 Thailands? Or maybe you live in a parallel universe.

     

    There is mass unemployment all over the country.  My wife's family, are all out of work and non of them are even vaguely connected to tourism. Luckily she's in the UK with me at the moment but had she still been in Thailand, she'd have had to close her hair salon once again last week! Her friend messaged her today to say she'd just been made redundant, along with 1000 other workers as the clothing factory she works at in Korat closed down. 

     

    My brother in law's event hire business has been forced to close for almost all of the last 18 months. As for the government's handouts - a large proportion of the population earn less than the tax and social security thresholds and therefore don't qualify for any aid.

     

    The other 'handouts' that the government gave out previously were done totally abritrarily.  There was no check on whether you had money or not, how many kids you had to feed, nothing - you just had to register on a website, a website that was offline more than it was on.  Out of 7 adults in my wife's family, 1 got the payments - I believe it was 5000 baht per month for 3 months.

     

    The next 'handout' I'm less clear on but it was something like money sent to the applicant's phone that had to be spent on food and essentials.  Once again the only qualification you needed was to be over 18.  Something like 2 million baht was made available on a few days and it was first come, first serve basis. Once the allocation was used up, that was that.  Those that are worst affected by the downturn had no chance as they either didn't have a phone or had no credit to use it. Both schemes required internet access.

     

    With both of the above schemes there were no checks - it was entirely possible for someone with millions in the bank to get a payout whilst someone that was penniless and starving got nothing.

     

    I've got to say you are totally out of touch with reality.  Millions of Thai's lived month to month with no savings before the pandemic - often heavily in hock to banks and finance companies.  How do you think those people - some that only earned 7 - 8000 per month previously, are doing now? How long would zero savings last you?

     

    You suggest people move? Again, take my brother in law - a really hard working guy, 2 kids both at school in Korat, all his equipment, trucks, tables, chairs etc. etc. sat gathering dust. Unskilled apart from in his business - where would you suggest he goes to find work? There is no bloody work - its not only toursim that's closed down. I don't know which part of Thailand you live in but you really need to get out more - why do you think the baht has been in freefall for the last couple of weeks?

     

    Protests?  Prayuth is lucky that Thai people are so tolerant and that they readily help each other out - if these problems were happening in some countries he'd have been dragged out and hanged by now.  However, everyone has their limit - that tolerance may not last much longer, hungry people have little to lose.

    Thanks for your reply and opinion.

     

    We might not read the same news sources.

     

    The official unemployment rate is 1.96% (latest number is from March/21), before the pandemic it was 0.92%; for comparison USA is 5.9% and UK 4.7% (June/21). It's normal for Thais to move for work, often from villages to Bangkok or industrial areas, or to tourist sites, so nothing different from normal conditions.

     

    Some Thais however don't wish to do certain kind of work as it's considered of low status, often work done by unskilled migrant workers, where there, according to the news articles, are shortage for hundreds of thousands.

     

    Social Security says that if you have paid for at least 6 month within a period of 15 month before getting unemployed, you are eligible for 50% of wages for 180 days, for each period. I presume that there is a ceiling of 15,000 baht as full monthly salary, as that is the maximum salary SS is counted from; i.e. 10% is 1,500 baht a month, however it's not specified in the English text from SS. I've not seen a minimum salary mentioned, but minimum amount for SS is 500 baht a month, which equals 5,000 baht; official minimum salary is around 325 baht per day, with little variation depending of province.

     

    The Covid pandemic and its restrictions have sadly hit hard all over the World, forcing many business owners to scale down or temporary close. But that has always been a part of the business-owner game, you can gain a lot, a lot more than being an employee, but you also take a risk, a risk for loosing a lot. And yes, it can be hard to be self employed, or business owner - I know it from experience - also partial owners, like shareholders, can loose a lot, and some have during the pandemic.

    • Popular Post
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    How much savings do I need to retire in Bangkok.

    in ASEAN NOW Community Pub

    Posted

    On 8/2/2021 at 12:03 PM, Michael Burke said:

    I am a 66 year old British male hoping to retire in Bangkok in 2022. I have 220,000GBP in savings and a full U.K pension, is this enough for a non smoker and very light drinker?

    £220k equals almost 10 million baht - converted, as you are going to use the money as baht - which can be calculated either as outcome, or as just using the funds, i.e. how many years are they going to last; 30 years is not an unrealistic count today, where many people lives to between 90 and 100, and as non smoker and healthy drinker (moderate amounts of alcohol is said to be healthy) you might be in for the longevity-game...????

     

    You need to set about 1 million baht aside, as 800,000 baht in a Thai bank deposit for extension of stay based on retirement, for example in a 12-month fixed account for best interest and less worries about immigration, and for example 100,000 to 200,000 baht in a rainy day account, so you always have access to instant cash; the interest from the immigration-deposit - normally around 10,000 baht a year, but less at the moment - you should add to the rainy day account, so it follows inflation and little extra. How much that is needed in a rainy day account is individual, personally I would opt for not less than 200,000 baht.

     

    So extremely simple, 9 million would give you a surplus of 300,000 baht a year, or 25,000 baht a month, on top of your UK-pension, which I'm not familiar with, but it seems like £180 a week before income tax, would that exchanged to Thai money be around 6,000 baht a week or another 25,000 baht a month?

     

    Any interest on the savings might catch up with inflation, but do check if UK state pension will be frozen when moving abroad; I've seen some posting about that, and then the pension is not regulated for inflation.

     

    If you "invest" in a condo on Bangkok, you will have less savings to spend, but you will save on renting a home. Often the calculation is that after approx 15 years ownership, you will live for free. However, there are still expenses when owning a condo, plus ongoing usage (i.e. electricity, water, Internet).

     

    If you are not very familiar with Thailand and Bangkok, I will suggest you to take it easy with investments, rent for a period, perhaps try different places to find the area that suits you best, and perhaps also check other places in Thailand, if you haven't been around yet, and already decided for Bangkok.

     

    Looking at investment possibilities and living from dividends or outcome from about equivalent to 9 million baht, a 4 percent outcome would be in the range of 360,000 baht a year, and 6 percent 540,000 baht a year, however before taxation. Investments with a high outcome normally involves risk, furthermore currency exchange rates can change. Some says that investing in baht in Thailand saves one for currency exchange rate deviations. The are plenty of possibilities for investing in the Thai in stock market with dividends in the range of 3-5 percent after withholding tax, which is 10 percent. Investment is always a question of balance, but you should be able to get as much in outcome, as when just dividing the money with 30-years, and still keep your funds. In a more complicated calculation, where you use both dividends and savings combined, you should be able to get more a month on top of the UK state pension, perhaps in the range of 50,000 baht per month, so your average total could be around 75,000 baht a month.

     

    The 65,000 baht a month "suggested" by the government - the amount needed to fulfill extension of stay based on retirement - fits quite well for a budget, and then be adjusted for personal lifestyle and needs.

     

    For example:

    • You should be able to find accommodation for around 25,000 baht a month, but it depends of area and size, you can easily spend a lot more, and you might find something for less.
    • I would normally budget 500 baht a day in average for food, i.e. 15,000 baht a month excluding alcoholic beverages, but it's a piece of rubber band, as it's depending of what you eat, and where you eat.
    • Alcohol can be anything from about 2,000 baht a month, if you for example enjoy a glass of wine, or two, with your dinner at home, and easily around 10,000 baht a month if you dine out and drink in restaurants, and wish to enjoy company in pub while having a beer or two.
    • Other expenses as transport and other regular needs could realistically be between 5,000 baht and 10,000 baht a month.
    • Health insurance is for many a surprise when coming from a country with public healthcare, as you are on your own when living in Thailand. 5,000 baht a month is not unrealistic, but it can be more, and the cost will increase by age. Counting 60,000 baht a year for a start, and 90,000 baht a year later, are not unrealistic figures.
    • Entertainment of any kind is the joker in the budget, Above sums up to an area around the 65,000 baht a month, so if you have an average income of 75,000 baht a month, there are 10,000 baht left for entertainment - which for example can be companionship, for the majority of us females - if you wish to spend more, you will need to adjust in the budget, or spend some more of your savings.

    I hope my experience might help you and wish you a happy otium in Thailand...????

     

     

    • Like 5

    Anyone else tired of the nonsense, and contemplating leaving Thailand?

    in ASEAN NOW Community Pub

    Posted

    1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

    Thanks. Was looking at Portugal too. Wonder if housing is more affordable. Looking at Spain, and for 1000 euros a month, you do not get much. Not anything I would want to live in. And that is an awful lot more than I pay here. 

     

    I am glad you like it here, but I completely disagree with your statement Thailand is as great as ever. Maybe for you. Maybe for some of us. Not for the average Thai, on any measurable level, even before Covid. 

    Do you know Expatistan's Cost of Living World Map?

     

    If not, it might be worth taking a look. When knowing places locally, you can live cheaper than the index suggests, but it seems to be all right as an overall guideline. It's based og Prague in Czech Republic (Europe) as index 100, and all other places' costs indexed from that point, i.e. for example New York 237, and London 238. Bangkok is not in the list at the moment, but used to be around index 100.

     

    You can find two Portuguese cities, Lisbon (124) and Oporto (114), which might be of your interest for comparing costs. In Lisbon for example

    "Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area, €857"

    and in Oporto

    "Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area,  €665".

     

    My friends live in Faro, which is also a major tourist destination, a beautiful place, but I'm not sure if it's over or under average Portuguese living costs. My experience was that it was a very affordable place, but I originates from Copenhagen-area, with index 197...????

     

    I know you and I have different views on Thailand, especially Koh Samui. The Thai people I know seems all quite satisfied - also before Covid - so it might be a question of which eyes and from which angle things are viewed...????

    • Like 1
    • Thanks 1

    More COVID cases in Surat Thani?

    in Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, Koh Tao

    Posted

    1 hour ago, huberthammer said:

    You say no dancing but until the day this fiasco became public they had almost daily advertising on their facebook with what DJ would be playing. Most have been removed since...

     

    I never knew they were serving food, but they might have changed their business plan from pub, or "club" as advertised on the sign, to restaurant. However, Black Bamboo "Restaurant" seemed, according to previous news articles, to have forgotten that restaurants shall close at 11 pm.

     

    wIMG20201226214827_Black-Bamboo.jpg.f9a836869913dd01acbac5fc54ef4900.jpg

    Large anti-government demonstration in Bangkok on Sunday

    in Bangkok News

    Posted · Edited by khunPer

    12 hours ago, KhaoYai said:

    When you've had no salary for 18 months, used up any savings you had, promised your life to the bank and don't know where your next meal is coming from - you could be forgiven for not caring too much about the timing.

    The companies are screaming for workers according to several news articles, but it seems like a number of Thais don't wish to change profession - I personally know several that rather wait till the tourism reopens, and I also know quite some that are making good money by changing profession, including moving - so if you really wish to do something to improve your life, you can do it.

     

    However, some migrant workers are suffering, as they cannot easily move on to another job.

     

    Edit/addition: Furthermore many have had the possibility to register for government aid packages beyond any unemployment fees paid from Social Security (first six month). And that might be why, there are not so many protesters.

    • Confused 1

    Phuket Sandbox: August target for tourists will not be met as pandemic rages in Thailand

    in Phuket News

    Posted

    1 hour ago, webfact said:

    The island welcomed 14,000 foreigners in its first month and with initial targets largely met it was hoped that 25,000 would be the figure for August.

    So that means that the original target was 80,000 tourist arrivals in September...????

     

    Perhaps the local tourism chief in a way is satisfied with the high number of Covid-infections, as there now is a good cause if the Sandbox target is not met.

    • Sad 1
    • Haha 1

    More COVID cases in Surat Thani?

    in Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, Koh Tao

    Posted · Edited by khunPer

    The Black Bamboo Restaurant apologize for the virus spread, according to Samui News Update.

     

    The Black Bamboo says that The Black Club burned on December 2nd 2020 and has not yet been renovated, and therefore not reopened. Adjacent The Black Bamboo Restaurant has opened, but is not a disco, and has no dancing. A person infected with Covid visited the restaurant without the staff had any chance to know, that is why the Covid-cluster occurred. The Back Bamboo Restaurant has therefore been closed since July 27th.

    A number of photos from the fire last year are shown.

     

    228328687_1233700137095260_1548626621262632253_n.jpg.202199c6faad67e4f6556da4d5b8d30f.jpg

     

    228791778_1233700180428589_6486696249368386533_n.jpg.d98b007965acdd9b55c464014983f93e.jpg

     

    231224440_1233700087095265_4326884494792643138_n.jpg.ad928d0f87f5bb5eb53ebd08d5d8f2b5.jpg

     

    Source in Thai language: Samui News Update.

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