Thailand

• Consumer confidence sinks, lowest since Nov 2001: UTCC – Thailand is moving closer to economic recession because of the ongoing political uncertainty, while the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) in April hit the lowest point in 12 and a half years, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce said. (Bangkok Post, 09/05/14)
• Mobile Expo disappoints — Sales in Thailand Mobile Expo were disheartening with low end phones disappointing the most. Retailers are expecting a 20% drop in mobile phones sales if consumption continues to shrink, partially a result from politics. (Kom Chat Leuk, 09/05/14)
• Moody’s: Outlook for Thailand’s banking system remains stable – The Thai banking outlook remains stable, as it has been since 2010, reflecting stable liquidity and funding conditions and banks’ ability to withstand the moderate increase in non-performing loans expected over the next 12-18 months, according to Moody’s Investors Service. (The Nation, 08/05/14)

• Private sector bids to keep lower VAT, income tax rates – The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking will this week send a petition to the government requesting a decree on extending the current lower rates of value-added and income tax as a leg-up for the private sector. (The Nation, 07/05/14)

• Applications miss target — The BoI reports that requests for benefits missed the 2013 target by Bt700bn, with 2014 looking worse than that due to lack of government spending and slow budget disbursements. (Thai Post, 07/05/14)
• Ministry of Commerce plans to launch new indicator to measure living expenses. The index will help the office monitor necessities prices as a measure to help protect the consumers. (ASTV Manager, 06/05/14)
• Revenue Department plans to start collecting VAT on sales of used items, with vehicles being the first target. (Kom Chat Leuk, 06/05/14)
• Trade surplus from consumption slowdown — The BoT says that the large trade surplus that Thailand recently reported is not due to economic growth but in large part due to the slowdown in consumption. This is seen in the greater drop in imports than in exports, which generated a trade surplus. (Post Today, 05/05/14)
• TDRI reported that there is over 500K unemployed in the nation as a direct effect of the slowing economy. It warns that if the political mess drags on to 2015, the situation could worsen even further, with layoffs from the private sector a definite possibility. (Prachachart Thurakit, 05/0/14)

Globally

• U.S. initial jobless claims drop after hitting two-month high – In the week ending May 3, the advance figure of seasonally adjusted initial claims for jobless benefits edged down to 319,000, 26,000 less than the previous week’s revised level, which was the highest since late February. (Xinhua, 08/05/14)
• March U.S. trade deficit falls 3.6% to US$40.38bn – The U.S. deficit in global trade of goods and services in March fell 3.6% from the previous month to US$40.38bn. Overall exports in March rose 2.1% while Imports increased 1.1%. (Kyodo, 06/05/14)
• U.S. economy to see faster growth after winter freeze: OECD – Growth is expected to average 2.6% this year and quicken to 3.5% in 2015, the OECD said, as gains in asset prices boost household wealth and the drag from fiscal policy continues to lighten. Growth averaged 1.9% last year. (Reuters, 06/05/14)
• U.S. economic activity in the non-manufacturing sector continued to grow in April, with the index standing at 55.2, higher than March’s reading of 53.1, according to the Institute for Supply Management. The number beat market expectations. (Xinhua, 05/05/14)
• China’s non-manufacturing PMI rebounds in April – The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for China’s non-manufacturing sector gained 0.3 percentage points from a month earlier to 54.8% in April, new data showed Saturday. (Xinhua, 03/05/14)
• China’s manufacturing activity continued to shrink in April, but at a slower pace. The HSBC/Markit China Purchasing Managers’ Index stood at 48.1 in April, up from 48.0 in March, but modestly trailing analyst expectations. (Xinhua, 05/05/14)
• Indonesia’s GDP misses estimates, growing least since 2009 – Gross domestic product rose 5.21% in the three months ended March 31 from a year earlier, the Central Bureau of Statistics said in Jakarta today. That compared with a median estimate of 5.59% in a Bloomberg survey of 15 economists. (Bloomberg, 05/05/14)
• China: Report forecasts 7% rise in power consumption – China’s power consumption is expected to mildly rebound starting from the second quarter, but it may still be below the level recorded in 2013. The report said the country’s power consumption may finally increase by 7% for all of 2014, and it will still be 0.5 percentage point lower than in 2013. (Xinhua, 06/05/14)
• German March industry orders tumble 2.8% as Ukraine weighs – German industry orders fell 2.8% in March from the previous month, the biggest drop in 1-1/2 years as demand for German capital and consumer goods from the eurozone slumped due partly to worries about the Ukraine crisis. (Reuters, 07/05/14)
• ECB keeps interest rates unchanged at 0.25% — The European Central Bank (ECB) on Thursday decided to keep interest rates unchanged at 0.25 percent at a regular rate-setting meeting. (Xinhua, 08/05/14)
• Bank of England remains interest rate at 0.5% – The Bank of England (BoE), the central bank of Britain, Thursday voted to keep its main interest rate unchanged at 0.5 percent, and keep its bond-buying economic stimulus scale at 375 billion pounds (634 billion U.S. dollars). (Xinhua, 08/05/14)
• Europe: In the eurozone, the recovery will be more moderate, with growth predicted at 1.2% this year and 1.7% next year. Joblessness is to remain high. Low inflation is likely to remain an issue, which is why the OECD recommends keeping interest rates low, or even lowering them further. (Deutsche Welle, 06/05/14)