New economic stimulus to be issued to spur Thai economy

BANGKOK, June 29 (TNA) - In an attempt to spur the Thai economy, Permanent Secretary for Finance Areepong Bhoocha-oom says that his ministry is considering issuing new economic stimulus measures to boost the national economy during the second half of this year. Areepong told journalists on Saturday (June 29) that the new economic stimulus measures should include a call on government offices in provincial areas to speed up their budget disbursements to spur local economic activities. The senior official's remarks followed a recent move by the Fiscal Policy Office (FPO), under his ministry, to revise down its projection of Thailand's economic growth this year to 4.5 per cent, from 4.8 per cent, due to a slowdown in public spending and Thai exports. According to the senior official, he is still optimistic that the Thai economy will turnaround, as the Thai baht has started weakening against the US dollar, which is a positive sign for Thai exports, while an ongoing slowdown of the Chinese economy should not pose any serious problem for Thailand. (TNA)