Nearly one-third of tourism-related businesses 'may shut down permanently'

[Cadan]

The richer get richer ????????????

[Moo 2]

Let's refresh memories, 3 months ago Gen. Prayut said "everything is under control" Yes?

I didn't vote because I am not allowed, but the ones who voted for him must be kicking

themselves and I would add, they deserve what they wished for.

 

 

[Trillian]

27 minutes ago, EricTh said:

Tourism is definitely more than 40% of Thai economy. Almost everything depend on tourists except for the topmost government officers.

So we can expect a 40% fall in GDP then Eric, right?

[EricTh]

4 minutes ago, Trillian said:

So we can expect a 40% fall in GDP then Eric, right?

 

https://www.thailand-business-news.com/banking/79466-thai-bank-forecasts-7-3-gdp-contraction-in-2020.html

 

A lot of tourist receipts are not recorded to evade taxes eg. Tuk-tuk drivers, ordinary traders etc. Then there are immigration agents involved in 'under the table' money for officers.

 

Yes, a 40% is quite the correct figure.

 

 

 

[Trillian]

2 minutes ago, EricTh said:

 

https://www.thailand-business-news.com/banking/79466-thai-bank-forecasts-7-3-gdp-contraction-in-2020.html

 

A lot of tourist receipts are not recorded to evade taxes eg. Tuk-tuk drivers, ordinary traders etc. Then there are immigration agents involved in 'under the table' money for officers.

 

Yes, a 40% is quite the correct figure.

 

 

 

Soooo, if tourism is 40% and exports are 60%, where does private consumption, inventories, services, investment and government consumption  fit, remember they all have to add up to 100, not 140 or so!

[OneeyedJohn]

8 hours ago, spiekerjozef said:

 

Smug....

He looks a proper charlie at his age and with that ridiculous haircut.

 

Did someone squirt something in his eyes?

[EricTh]

1 minute ago, Trillian said:

Soooo, if tourism is 40% and exports are 60%, where does private consumption, inventories, services, investment and government consumption  fit, remember they all have to add up to 100, not 140 or so!

All local consumption, exports, services etc are in the figure of 60% and it adds up to 100%.

 

Remember there are many hidden income not reported to the government. This include bar fees, 'special services' which is a huge industry catering to mostly foreigners etc. 
 

[hotchilli]

9 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

How is this not already occurring. Tourism is dead and will be for a long time. Is he really that blind.  Domestic tourism will be the only source of redistributing money around the country and will not increase the tourism industry.  It will not be easy for many to hear, but a new type of industry is needed and has been needed for quite awhile. Thailand killed off tourism for many international travelers years ago when they put all of there eggs in one basket and wooed the Chinese extensively and designed a tourism based industry just for them.  Greed and corruption go hand in hand. Time to come up with new Ideas Thailand.....

There's the truth right there... international tourism is dead for another year or possibly more, domestic tourism is not enough to generate the income required to keep everything open that catered to mass tourism. Many of those without the backers are going to go, they've hung on for 4 months hoping things would improve, they haven't and in the next 4 months some tough decisions are going to be made. 

[spidermike007]

10 hours ago, ezzra said:

I hope that the tourism related business that uses the ugly and racist double pricing policies will fall and shut down first for good...

No doubt many will. And thousands have shut down already. I see this in Bangkok, Hua Hin, Samui and elsewhere. But, unfortunately this will also affect alot of businesses run by good hearted, hard working individuals. Not sure how appropriate the silly grin is, on Chairat's mug. Millions are, and will remain devastated by this tourism collapse. 

 

And if one thing is certain, the administration is NOT doing nearly enough to help the average Thai cope with this. 

Edited July 12, 2020 by spidermike007

[Trillian]

10 minutes ago, EricTh said:

All local consumption, exports, services etc are in the figure of 60% and it adds up to 100%.

 

Remember there are many hidden income not reported to the government. This include bar fees, 'special services' which is a huge industry catering to mostly foreigners etc. 
 

Um, not really, those things are not exports!

 

Here's some light easy reading that may help your understanding better:

https://www.nesdc.go.th/nesdb_en/article_attach/eng Q4-62_NEW.pdf

 

EDIT TO ADD: International Tourism Eric is classified as an export so it sits inside the 60% figure. What you're saying is that international tourism at 40% of GDP is worth more than the sum total of everything that Thailand exports which represents only 20% of GDP! You need to read that link mate.

 

Edited July 12, 2020 by Trillian

[Jumbo1968]

If they opened the airports tomorrow I doubt very much there would be a huge flood of Tourists, possibly people like myself with a Thai partner and son stuck in the U.K. and unable to jump through hoops to return. My biggest concern is my partners Visa expires on the 4th of September and if the U.K. Immigration will treat with sympathy to extend it.

[Thingamabob]

Many of you rather over-estimate your own importance to Thailand. It has become an unpleasant trend since the advent of cheap flights. A degree of modesty works wonders in Thailand. Give it a try.

[Expat Tom]

China is a willing buyer. They will eventually own Thailand anyway. At the very least, Thailand will become a vassal state to China and drop out of ASEAN as all of the other member nations will become hardened enemies of China.

[Skallywag]

1/3 of tourist related businesses were struggling before the pandemic here in Pattaya. 

The greedy building landlords that had been raising rents every year will suffer the most I hope.

Think the reliance on tourism was doomed here in Pattaya about 10-15 years ago.

Every business copied over and over, never enough tourists. 

Shops every soi selling the same stuff, the same food. the same cup of coffee, etc...

Massage parlors every 20 meters on Sai song and beach road.

Ridiculous 

Edited July 12, 2020 by Skallywag

[nausea]

It's gonna be a hard rain gonna fall, the point is a ton of money was spent in the black market, barfining girls and whatever, and that's not even talking about the old guys buying their girls houses or pick-ups or what have you. 

[blackcab]

A post has been removed for altering a quoted post.

 

2. Please do not modify someone else's post in your quoted reply, either with font or color changes or wording. Such posts will be deleted and the user warned.

 

An off topic post has also been removed.

[Time to grow]

10 hours ago, sezze said:

Once tourism is going again , and it will get going again

I wouldn't be so sure. The sooner the masses come to realize that it is a new paradigm, the better off they will be.

[BobinBKK]

10 hours ago, ezzra said:

I hope that the tourism related business that uses the ugly and racist double pricing policies will fall and shut down first for good...

We can help these types of businesses collapse completely if we simply choose not to spend our money there. There are far more deserving Thai people and businesses in this country that treat us with dignity and respect and we should patronize their businesses only!!!

[mpyre]

10 hours ago, CLS said:

“considering moving the schedule up to open the country to foreign tourists under a practice similar to the travel bubble scheme”

 

Only the urge to make money brings them to reason.

Or perhaps to help working people who are suffering terribly?

[VBF]

9 hours ago, overherebc said:

In addition how long will the 100,000 US dollar Covid insurance requirement stay 'on the books'?

For genuine tourists, ie not people using tourist visas to stay long term in Thailand, that is NOT the issue.

There are loads of companies offering it but one must be resident in the country of issue...eg UK

 

See my topic:

 

What ARE issues is this illusive / non-existent "Covid-free" letter and being forced into quarantine for 14 days

And that's when flights resume and Tourists are even allowed in!

 

And @ThailandRyan I agree  - the insurance requirement is probably here long-term - but from the above...does it matter?

Just choose your insurance company more carefully

Edited July 12, 2020 by VBF

[Sean60]

It is amazing how these rich people sitting in their homes are so far away from the misery people are having. How low the respect for other humans can be? People are suffering big time. We don't sleep and depress. Open up the country. You have had 4 months to get your act together. this country need the tourism. The debt is pilling high, people are getting poorer every day. For what? 

[Knocker33]

Why is he looking so happy then? 

[VBF]

7 hours ago, BritManToo said:

You're assuming significant numbers of foreign tourists will ever be allowed in again.

You're assuming there will still be plentiful international flights ever again.

Which is a bet I wouldn't spend any money on. 

Disagree on both.

I believe tourists will be allowed, but the conditions may be more or less onerous - see my post #142 above

Flights will simply be the old law of supply and demand - the airlines are monitoring this world-wide - they have the capacity and will unleash it when it becomes commercially viable.

[Time to grow]

2 hours ago, fraggleRock said:

the gold reserves are going to run out soon and the Bhat will collapse with significant inflation

 

2 hours ago, fraggleRock said:

sell your assets now and get your cash out of this doomed state

Is it me or are those two opinions completely at odds to each other? Sell your assets because the currency will be worthless soon.

[VBF]

6 hours ago, jlwilliamsjr18 said:

Gross mismanagement, unregulated tourism, mass tourism for max. profit has led Thailand into human bondage, disease, murder and environmental catastrophe. The lure of drugs, sex, alcohol, on the cheap has virtually destroyed this paradise.  So... it's good that these businesses are dissolving.  Now is the time to repair and move forward, not an instant fix, but real sincere reparation, a new normal. Yes, it's time to weed out the drunken ex-pat mongers, send them home, stop the party venues (Full Moon etc.) Embrace eco-tourism, limit tourism and in the long run, revenues will increase. Young people, not foreigners will have opportunities that lead somewhere, not to debt and poverty, which lead to crime and self hate. NO, I'm not missionary, I'm a realist. 

And something of a killjoy? 

Just because you don't enjoy the things you mention, doesn't mean other consenting adults don't! 

[andux]

7 hours ago, jlwilliamsjr18 said:

The lure of drugs, sex, alcohol, on the cheap has virtually destroyed this paradise.  So... it's good that these businesses are dissolving.  Now is the time to repair and move forward, not an instant fix, but real sincere reparation, a new normal. Yes, it's time to weed out the drunken ex-pat mongers, send them home, stop the party venues (Full Moon etc.) Embrace eco-tourism, limit tourism and in the long run, revenues will increase. Young people, not foreigners will have opportunities that lead somewhere, not to debt and poverty, which lead to crime and self hate. NO, I'm not missionary, I'm a realist. 

 

So basically make Thailand as fun as Minsk?

[cedel]

10 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

How is this not already occurring. Tourism is dead and will be for a long time. Is he really that blind.  Domestic tourism will be the only source of redistributing money around the country and will not increase the tourism industry.  It will not be easy for many to hear, but a new type of industry is needed and has been needed for quite awhile. Thailand killed off tourism for many international travelers years ago when they put all of there eggs in one basket and wooed the Chinese extensively and designed a tourism based industry just for them.  Greed and corruption go hand in hand. Time to come up with new Ideas Thailand.....

"Thailand killed off tourism for many international travelers years ago when they put all of there eggs in one basket and wooed the Chinese extensively and designed a tourism based industry just for them.  Greed and corruption go hand in hand."

 

Exactly, I saw that coming since years already...just by comparing how empty "Walking street" in Pattaya was year after year at the same season...all this due to the "greed", the rampant racism, the scams, the more and more ennoying, binding and punitive rules towards honest long-stay foreigners like the TM28, the TM30, the fines at immigration without warning, without notice suddenly  if you didn't report yourself living in your own condo (the pinnacle of stupid**y)..Treating honest people like gangsters or children forcing them to report if they left the province to visit a friend and stay there for the week end...punishing even the friend...Not to mention double pricing, unfair police or court treatment in case of road accident between a thai and a foreigner who is always wrong and is seeen as an ATM to feed the corruption ! 

As long as they don't change the mentality, the rules and the rulers (the rigid army), and give us a kind of democracy, with the same rights as thais, like every foreigner receives in Europe, ...the tourism industry at least of all the middle-age or seniors once-expats that represents also a part of the revenue is dead.

I could cite more and more examples also what they invent at the custom when you send a parcel to Thailand...they suddenly tell you that you need supposedly so-caled "licence"..of course impossible to get and if you want to refuse and return the parcel (before it has been cleared) they say: impossible: you would need also a "licence" to export (!!!)..so "it's better to abandon the parcel, or pay 30,000 baht penalties plus 300 baht per day warehouse fees after the 2nd day that the parcel stays there...making all that unpayable because often doubles or triple the value of your shipment..They create those supposed rules on purpose: to keep and steal our parcels, it happenned to me as well as to another friend, I could not resist to tell this story here to add to this sentiment of "unpunishment" from some thais..and the "fed up"sentiment of many "farangs"...

Do or did any of the foreigners or expats readind this feel or lived the same situation ?

[zaZa9]

Take a walk down the main street of Chaweng , Samui  , and you'd be convinced that  only a quarter of businesses would ever re-open !

[Mikeasq60]

1 hour ago, Time to grow said:

I wouldn't be so sure. The sooner the masses come to realize that it is a new paradigm, the better off they will be.

Where do you obtain your information I want to be at the same level of knowledge as yourself?

[Mikeasq60]

2 hours ago, Moo 2 said:

Let's refresh memories, 3 months ago Gen. Prayut said "everything is under control" Yes?

I didn't vote because I am not allowed, but the ones who voted for him must be kicking

themselves and I would add, they deserve what they wished for.

 

 

Agreed!