Confusion amid reports Thailand's top economic team to resign

[snoop1130]

Confusion amid reports Thailand's top economic team to resign

 

FILE PHOTO: Cars pass a Skytrain (Bangkok Mass Transit System) construction site in Bangkok, Thailand May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana and economic policy guru and Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak are planning to resign their posts, local media reported on Wednesday.

 

Reuters could not independently confirm the online reports by two Thai media groups, while other media reports said the ministers were not resigning.

 

Changes to the top economic team could rattle Southeast Asia's worst performing economy, which is struggling with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, with billions of dollars of stimulus measures being rolled out and big ticket investment projects already slow.

 

The ministers could not be reached for comment, and the government spokeswoman did not answer phone calls.

 

Sources in the ruling Palang Pracharat Party gave contradictory answers when contacted by Reuters.

 

Financial newspaper Than Settakij first reported on Wednesday afternoon that Somkid and three cabinet ministers had tendered their resignation to Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.

 

It was followed by a similar report Krungthep Turakij, another financial newspaper in the same media group.

 

Another daily newspaper Matichon said reports of the resignations were untrue, but its sister financial paper Prachachart said the same group of economic ministers would hold a news conference on Thursday to explain their planned resignation.

 

The newspapers all cited unnamed sources.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-07-15

 

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[Mavideol]

4 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

Thailand's Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana and economic policy guru and Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak are planning to resign their posts, local media reported on Wednesday.

heads are starting to roll.... more to come, Prayut's next????

[86Tiger]

No body wants to be left holding the bag.  It will not be pretty when all is said and done.

[LomSak27]

Just now, 86Tiger said:

No body wants to be left holding the bag.  It will not be pretty when all is said and done.

 

I was setting things up to reload my BK Account back to 800K, prepping for visa renewal. This little bit of news makes me feel all flipping warm and fuzzy ????   What is worse, it is not really a surprise.

 

Edited July 15, 2020 by LomSak27

[Forza2002]

Anther coup? Apirat is retiring soon. If Anutin has his support and is made PM then it's goodbye to many Expats living here...???????? Remember Anutin is the leader of the largest coalition party at present... 

[phungo]

Are you guys implying that the worst part of this economic downturn is yet to come? That those retired have inside info that <deleted> is about to hit the fan, and that is why they are resigning?

 

If this is true, those of us that have money from outside Thailand will profit since prices such as rent will go down?

 

Basically, what im asking is how does this affect me and you?

Edited July 15, 2020 by phungo

[Eibot]

Jumping ship before they can be blamed for the biggest recession in Thai history.

 

Imagine the loss of face.

[Eibot]

Just now, phungo said:

Are you guys implying that the worst part of this economic downturn is yet to come? That those retired have inside info that <deleted> is about to hit the fan, and that is why they are resigning?

 

If this is true, those of us that have money from outside Thailand will profit since prices such as rent will go down?

 

Basically, what im asking is how does this affect me and you?

Good time to buy. 

[Blumpie]

1 hour ago, 86Tiger said:

No body wants to be left holding the bag.  It will not be pretty when all is said and done.

No it won't be.

You can't just have businesses cease to exist, get no tax money no employment and not expect that there will be serious consequences.  Furthermore, when it's apparent that tourism is NOT coming back, the fallout could be really bad.  

Stop 15-20 percent of GDP it's crushing.  Not to mention the severe downturn in manufacturing.  

 

[dinsdale]

3 hours ago, Mavideol said:

heads are starting to roll.... more to come, Prayut's next????

Said it before. Prayut won't go. He'll put his uniform back on and roll out the army. Coming soon. Can't extend the state of emergency for ever as much as he'd like to. He will need to be overthrown by the people. It's the only way.

[shdmn]

1 hour ago, phungo said:

Are you guys implying that the worst part of this economic downturn is yet to come? That those retired have inside info that <deleted> is about to hit the fan, and that is why they are resigning?

 

If this is true, those of us that have money from outside Thailand will profit since prices such as rent will go down?

 

Basically, what im asking is how does this affect me and you?

Probably nothing.  Not even lower rent unless you move.  Wouldn't hurt to ask at your current place though if you notice vacancy is a little light.

 

If I was in the market to buy a condo, this might be a good opportunity or will be shortly.

Edited July 15, 2020 by shdmn

[geriatrickid]

So what if they resign. The economic policy is set by career finance department officials and despite all the self appointed experts here, Thailand has been following an economic strategy  common to other countries including Australia, Canada, the EU, japan, South Korea, the EU etc. 

Thailand is not on the verge of collapse and its economic condition is no worse than anywhere else because of Covid19. It is sitting on massive reserves and has important commodities for export that the world needs. Stop pushing scenarios of doom and gloom. Thailand is still in relatively good shape for the rest of the year.

 

21 minutes ago, shdmn said:

Probably nothing.  Not even lower rent unless you move.  Wouldn't hurt to ask at your current place though if you notice vacancy is a little light.

If I was in the market to buy a condo, this might be a good opportunity or will be shortly.

 

LOL. Now is not the time to purchase a condo unless one needs immediate housing for a family. The market has not yet  undergone a  real adjustment. IMO it will be a buyers market in 3-6 months. Interest rates are low so  debt service is still manageable for many. Those in trouble will have been in trouble prior to Covid19 and most likely will have liens attached to their property and will not have maintained the  property. That type of property is best avoided.

 

 

 

 

[tribalfusion001]

The sh*t will hit the fan from October onwards, this is the calm before the storm and it has the potential to be really bad. The 2nd wave is not the virus, it's economic fallout from the lockdowns.

[tribalfusion001]

41 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

Said it before. Prayut won't go. He'll put his uniform back on and roll out the army. Coming soon. Can't extend the state of emergency for ever as much as he'd like to. He will need to be overthrown by the people. It's the only way.

This is a likely scenario and I don't think it will be the only country to go this way.

 

37 minutes ago, shdmn said:

Probably nothing.  Not even lower rent unless you move.  Wouldn't hurt to ask at your current place though if you notice vacancy is a little light.

 

If I was in the market to buy a condo, this might be a good opportunity or will be shortly.

Quite likely to be a housing market collapse in Q4.

[tribalfusion001]

1 hour ago, Blumpie said:

No it won't be.

You can't just have businesses cease to exist, get no tax money no employment and not expect that there will be serious consequences.  Furthermore, when it's apparent that tourism is NOT coming back, the fallout could be really bad.  

Stop 15-20 percent of GDP it's crushing.  Not to mention the severe downturn in manufacturing.  

 

Correct, this crisis has hardly started.

[Andrew65]

The one economics guy they had in gvt who seemed to know his stuff (more than others) was Khun Korn, I think he's still around politics there.

Edited July 15, 2020 by Andrew65

[sammieuk1]

Reports of a mob and unrest in Rayong after a visit by prayut not sure of any accuracy though ???? 

[tribalfusion001]

Just now, sammieuk1 said:

Reports of a mob and unrest in Rayong after a visit by prayut not sure of any accuracy though ???? 

Wouldn't surprise me, the money is drying up and no more is coming in, plus they coveted Thailand being covid-19 free.

[sammieuk1]

Not so much confusion after reading this the factions must be little big P old fat P and dirty A????

 

Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana announced today he will resign from his post tomorrow.

He also confirmed reports that Deputy PM Somkid Jatusripitak, Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong, Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation Suvit Maesincee and Kobsak Pootrakool, deputy secretary general to the PM for political affairs will also resign.

The group is credited with running Thailand’s economy but has reportedly come under pressure from factions within the ruling Palang Pracharat Party.

Sontirat, Suwit and Uttama earlier resigned from their Palang Pracharat Party executive posts.

[timendres]

13 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Reports of a mob and unrest in Rayong after a visit by prayut not sure of any accuracy though ???? 

Two Thais protested with some not inoffensive signs. They were removed by police. A Shabu restaurant owner stated online that he will refuse to close his restaurant again. He simply cannot afford it. It will be certain economic death for him, his family, and his staff. The visit did not go well at all, as Prayuth basically said "There will be no further assistance for Rayong if we are forced to shut the place down".

[tso310]

51 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Reports of a mob and unrest in Rayong after a visit by prayut not sure of any accuracy though ???? 

Wife saw a video somewhere online. Said how old he now looked.

[Blumpie]

3 hours ago, tribalfusion001 said:

Correct, this crisis has hardly started.

Until there is control by vaccine or treatment there is little hope.  

There is no tourist on the planet that can travel right now, like it or not.  When the high season starts in Thailand then it will finally sink in - it's not going to get better and of course the Chinese are not coming, full stop.  

[tribalfusion001]

25 minutes ago, Blumpie said:

Until there is control by vaccine or treatment there is little hope.  

There is no tourist on the planet that can travel right now, like it or not.  When the high season starts in Thailand then it will finally sink in - it's not going to get better and of course the Chinese are not coming, full stop.  

There is travel around Europe for us here in the UK and I would fly long haul if any where opens up. The Chinese are not going any where for quite some time. There will be nothing left by the time high season starts.

[CorpusChristie]

4 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

Reports of a mob and unrest in Rayong after a visit by prayut not sure of any accuracy though ???? 

We dont have "mob unrest" in Thailand , thats a Western thing 

[timendres]

33 minutes ago, Blumpie said:

Until there is control by vaccine or treatment there is little hope.  

There is no tourist on the planet that can travel right now, like it or not.  When the high season starts in Thailand then it will finally sink in - it's not going to get better and of course the Chinese are not coming, full stop.  

"Until there is control by vaccine or treatment there is little hope."

 

Or until people wake up to reality and end this nonsense.

[tribalfusion001]

5 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

We dont have "mob unrest" in Thailand , thats a Western thing 

Plenty of time for that.

[CorpusChristie]

4 minutes ago, tribalfusion001 said:

Plenty of time for that.

Thais have handled this quite sensibly , all working together to get through it .

You have done terribly , you lot riot and have civil unrest  and spread the virus , here in Thailand we just chilled out , sat at home and waited for it to pass 

[tribalfusion001]

Just now, CorpusChristie said:

Thais have handled this quite sensibly , all working together to get through it .

You have done terribly , you lot riot and have civil unrest  and spread the virus , here in Thailand we just chilled out , sat at home and waited for it to pass 

Wait for it to pass, going to be long wait.

 

Some of our lads have caused carnage in Magaluf too, rule Britannia...https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/14/video-of-drunken-brits-maskless-in-magaluf-appals-spaniards

[webfact]

Thailand's top economic team to resign - media reports

 

FILE PHOTO: Uttama Savanayana, Palang Pracharat Party leader, holds a news conference after the general election in Bangkok, Thailand, March 27, 2019. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand was thrown into confusion on Wednesday over reports the government's economic team, including the finance minister, were resigning, as Southeast Asia's worst-performing economy struggles with the fallout from the coronavirus crisis.

 

Thai media reported that Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana and longtime economic policy czar Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak had resigned or were planning to resign their posts.

 

Asked about the reports, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha told reporters "I don't know, I have not seen".

 

Uttama quit the ruling party last week along with two other ministers amid rumours of an impending cabinet shakeup, but they all remained in their cabinet positions.

 

The ministers could not be reached for comment, and the government spokeswoman did not answer phone calls.

 

Sources in Prayuth's ruling Palang Pracharat Party gave contradictory answers when contacted by Reuters.

 

Somkid is not a member of Palang Pracharat, but he has been considered the guiding economic advisor to Prayuth since shortly after the then-army chief overthrew an elected government in 2014.

 

Changes to the top economic team could further rattle Thailand's economy as the government tries to mitigate damage from the coronavirus pandemic, with billions of dollars of stimulus measures being rolled out and big ticket investment projects already slowed.

 

Financial newspaper Than Settakij first reported on Wednesday afternoon that Somkid and two cabinet ministers had tendered their resignation to Prayuth.

 

It was followed by a similar report in Krungthep Turakij, another newspaper in the same media group.

 

Another daily newspaper, Matichon, said reports of the resignations were untrue, but later posted another story saying that Uttama had "revealed" he would hand in his resignation on Thursday morning.

 

Its sister financial paper Prachachart said the same group of ministers would hold a news conference on Thursday to explain their plans.

 

All of the newspapers cited anonymous sources.

 

(Reporting by Orathai Sriring, Panu Wongcha-um and Panarat Thepgumpanat Writing by Kay Johnson; Editing by Martin Petty and Sonya Hepinstall)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-07-16

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

[sammieuk1]

19 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

We dont have "mob unrest" in Thailand , thats a Western thing 

How would you explain the mob running the show ????