Thailand

• The private sector expects the economy to post an upturn next year and plans to ramp up investment and business acquisition ahead. The private sector also supports the state’s idea of a VAT increase as it believe the this will help increase competition and push Thai businesses to expand abroad. (Bangkokbiznews, 21/11/14)
• Prime Minister agrees to airports expansion plan with a total budget of Bt93bn, to be spent on Phase 2 expansion of Suvarnabhumi Airport, Don Muang Airport and Phuket Airport, in hopes of lifting tourists to reach target of 139mn by 2019. (Bangkokbiznews, 21/11/14)
• Time to speed up reform – Industry leaders are urging the government to move faster on infrastructure investment, tax reform, tourism promotion and revising laws and regulations to reduce business obstacles. (Bangkok Post, 21/11/14)

• Higher tax revenue could boost 2016-17 state spending – The Finance Ministry thinks an 18% boost in state spending next fiscal year will be feasible thanks to improved tax revenue. (The Nation, 21/11/14)
• Central bank cites risks to 2015 growth – Despite a buoyant economic outlook next year, the growth rate could be derailed by delays in government spending, subdued domestic consumption and tepid global economic growth, says a senior Bank of Thailand official. (Bangkok Post, 21/11/14)
  Thai industrial sentiment rises in October – The latest survey of 1,144 Thai firms shows that the Thai Industries Sentiment Index (TISI) for October 2014 improved to 87.5 from 86.1 in September due to higher overall purchase orders, sales, production output and companies’ operations results. (The Nation, 20/11/14)
• FTI projects less than 1.5% expansion this year – The Federation of Thai Industries projects Thai economy in 2014 is likely to expand less than 1.5% and expand by between 4.0-4.5% in 2015. (IQ Biz, 19/11/14)
• Cabinet approves railway deal with China – The cabinet yesterday cleared the way for a proposed railway construction deal between Thailand and China to link border province Nong Khai to the industrial coastal region of Map Ta Phut in Rayong. (Bangkok Post, 19/11/14)
• Inheritance tax draft bill green-lighted – The cabinet yesterday endorsed the draft bill for an inheritance tax that seeks to impose a 10% levy on bequests of more than Bt50mn. (Bangkok Post, 19/11/14)
• Cabinet adjusts salaries of lower-paid civil servants. Civil servants and government workers who earn Bt9,000 per month or less would have their salaries raised to Bt10,000 a month. As for civil servants who earn higher than Bt10,000 but less than Bt15,000 per month, they would have their salaries raised as well but the amount would not exceed Bt13,825 per month. The rise is also in line with each civil servant’s base salary level. (NNT, 18/11/14)
• NESDB cuts GDP growth forecast to 1% after 3Q14 GDP of just 0.6% – The National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) has cut its 2014 growth forecast for gross domestic product to 1% from its previous estimate of 1.5-2.0% after GDP in the third quarter grew by just 0.6%. (The Nation, 18/11/14)
• Special economic zones – After the meeting of Policy Committee on Special Economic Zone Development, PM Prayuth said the there will be total of 12 special economic zones. Five zones will be set up immediately with a budget of Bt4-5bn. (Post Today, 18/11/14)
• FBA changes ‘aim to cut obstacles’ – The government has reiterated its planned amendments to the Foreign Business Act (FBA) are aimed at reducing obstacles to trade and investment. (Bangkok Post, 18/11/14)
  BOT chief backs bonds for rice-scheme debt – The Bank of Thailand (BOT) governor has agreed with the Finance Ministry’s decision to issue long-term bonds to cover debt worth Bt682bn from the costly rice pledging scheme. But he said management of the amount of each offer and the spread between maturity dates should be done with care so it does not affect other government operations and market interest rates. (The Nation, 16/11/14)
• Thailand, China ink rice deal – Thailand is set to sign a G-to-G deal next month to sell 2mn tonnes of rice and 200,000 tonnes of rubber to China. (Bangkok Post, 15/11/14)
• The government has set aside Bt16.8bn for extra salary rises for state officials, in an attempt to bridge the salary gap between the public and private sector and better reflect the cost of living. (Bangkok Biz, 17/11/14)
• Tax revenue slightly under target – The MoF said Tax revenue from the Excise Department, the Revenue Department, and the Customs Department was at Bt150bn, slightly lower then the target. (Khao Sod, 17/11/14)
• The NESDB trims 2014 GDP forecast to 1.5% due to delays in budget disbursement. (Bangkok Biz, 17/11/14)

Globally

• U.S. stocks open lower after tepid data – U.S. manufacturing output increased at the weakest pace since January, with the Markit Flash U.S. manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) slipped to 54.7 in November from 55.9 in the prior month, said financial data firm Markit. (Xinhua, 20/11/14)
• U.S. existing home sales rise in October – U.S. existing home sales in October rose to its highest level since September 2013 and are above year-on-year levels for the first time in 2014, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said Thursday. Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co- ops, increased 1.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.26mn in October from a revised-up 5.18mn in September. (Xinhua, 20/11/14)
• U.S. consumer prices unchanged in October – U.S. consumer prices were unchanged in October, in line with market expectation, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Consumer Price Index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, was unchanged in October on a seasonally adjusted basis, following a 0.1% increase in the previous month. Over the last 12 months, the index increased 1.7% before seasonal adjustment. (Xinhua, 20/11/14)
• U.S. initial jobless claims continue to drop – The number of Americans initially applying for unemployment aid fell slightly last week and stayed below 300,000 for the tenth straight week, U.S. Labor Department said Thursday. In the week ending on Nov. 15, the advance figure of seasonally adjusted initial claims for jobless benefits declined by 2,000 to 291,000, near a 14-year low of 266,000 touched a month ago, the department said. (Xinhua, 20/11/14)
• British retail sales rebound strongly in Oct. – The British retail industry rebounded strongly in October after a fall in September, driven by the strength of household goods sales, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed Thursday. British retail sales rose by 0.8% month-on-month in October after a fall of 0.3% in September. (Xinhua, 20/11/14)
• Eurozone business growth slower than thought as orders fall – Eurozone business growth has been weaker than any forecaster expected this month and new orders have fallen for the first time in more than a year despite further price-cutting, a survey showed on Thursday. Markit’s Composite Flash Purchasing Managers’ Index, based on surveys of thousands of companies and seen as a good growth indicator, fell to 51.4, missing even the lowest forecast in a Reuters poll. (Reuters, 20/11/14)
• U.S. housing starts fall in October – U.S. privately-owned housing starts were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,009,000 in October. It was 2.8% below the revised September estimate of 1,038,000, but was 7.8% above the year-ago level. (Xinhua, 19/11/14)
• BOE keeps interest rate unchanged – The British central bank announced on Nov. 6 after a two-day meeting that Bank Rate would stay at 0.5% and the stock of asset purchases, or quantitative easing policy, maintained at £375bn. (Xinhua, 19/11/14)
• China loosens outbound investment control – The Chinese government has relaxed its grip on outbound direct investment (ODI) as domestic enterprises begin to invest heavily abroad. China’s ODI by non-financial firms rose 17.8% from a year ago in the first ten months to US$81.9bn, while foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Chinese mainland dropped 1.2% year on year to US$95.9bn, the commerce ministry said on Tuesday. (Xinhua, 19/11/14)
  U.S. producer prices add 0.2% in October – The Producer Price Index (PPI), a gauge of inflation at the factory gate, rose 0.2% in October, following a 0.1% decline in September and beating market expectation. (Xinhua, 18/11/14)
• U.S. builder confidence rebounds in November – The builder sentiment index rose to 58 this month, up from October’s reading of 54 and higher than the market expectation of 55, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/ Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). (Xinhua, 18/11/14)
• British CPI edges up to 1.3% in Oct. – Britain’s consumer price index (CPI) grew by 1.3% in the year to October 2014, up from the 1.2% in July, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). (Xinhua, 18/11/14)
• Japan’s PM delays tax hike, to dissolve lower house Friday – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a press conference Tuesday that he decided to delay the second round sales tax hike by 18 months and he will dissolve the lower house on Nov. 21. (Xinhua, 18/11/14)
• Indonesia’s central bank hikes the overnight interest rate to 7.75% – Indonesia’s central bank, in an extraordinary meeting Tuesday, raised the benchmark overnight interest rate by 0.25 percentage point to 7.75%, the highest since 2009, effective Wednesday. (Xinhua, 18/11/14)
• U.S. consumer sentiment keeps rising in November – The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s preliminary reading of the consumer sentiment in November, which records the figure for the first half of a month, edged up to 89.4 from 86.9 in October, which was also higher than the market average expectation of 87.5. (Xinhua, 15/11/14)
• U.S. retail sales rise slightly in October – In October, U.S. retail sales edged up 0.3% from the previous month to US$444.50bn, following a 0.3% decrease in September, the Commerce Department said Friday, beating market consensus of a 0.2% rise. (Xinhua, 15/11/14)
• The price index for U.S. imports dropped 1.3% in October, mostly led by falling fuel prices, while export prices fell 1.0%, the Labor Department reported. (Xinhua, 15/11/14)
• China’s Oct. new yuan loans up year on year – China’s new yuan-denominated lending in October hit 548.3 billion yuan (US$89.30bn), up from 42.3 billion yuan year on year, the central bank announced Friday. (Xinhua, 14/11/14)
• Japan economy shrinks annualized 1.6% in July-Sept – Japan’s economy shrank an annualized real 1.6% in the three months to September against an average market forecast of growth of around 2%, according to government data released Monday that is likely to lead Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to postpone a second consumption tax hike. (Kyodo News, 17/11/14)