1. The Office of Insurance Commission (OIC) ordered KWI Life Insurance to suspend policy sales as its capital adequacy ratio is lower than the legal limit.
2. Oct care sales -36.1% yoy to 37,691 units, with top 3 with highest market share, Toyota, Isuzu and Honda saw 27.3%, 44.4% and 43.4% fall respectively.
3. Rubber authority of TH expected rubber output to shrink by 320k tons this year from 4.79m tons FY24 production estimate as rubber tapping is suspended in various areas in eight key provinces due to heavy rainfall and flooding in southern TH.
4. Foreign tourist arrivals have reached 32m YTD, +28% yoy, vs 36.7m target this year. Nov arrivals stood at 3.15m, +17.6% yoy.
5. Government’s considering tax reform, reducing corporate income tax from 20% to 15%, aligning with the global min tax (GMT) framework, lowering P-Tax rate from 35% to 15% to draw skilled professional & global talent, exploring options to increase VAT from current 7%. Final details are yet to be confirmed, with further announcements expected as study in progresses.
6. 15% VAT plan has PM vexed: Finance Ministry is ‘studying’ the idea. Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has joined a chorus of critics in expressing concern over the Finance Ministry’s proposal to double the level of value-added tax (VAT) from the current rate of 7%. Bangkok Post
7. New taxes for EVs: Hybrid vehicles to get shot in arm. The national committee in charge of promoting the electric-vehicle (EV) industry has approved a new car tax structure to support the production of hybrid vehicles as part of a plan to convert internal combustion engines to electric power. Bangkok Post
8. Loan growth projected to contract this year: Bank loan growth is expected to contract this year, although it picked up slightly in the fourth quarter, with banks continuing their credit tightening in 2025-26 amid subdued GDP growth, say analysts. Bangkok Post
9. The government expects commercial banks to take part in its retail debt restructuring programme.: Incentive should encourage enrolment. Commercial banks are expected to help restructure retail home and car loans in line with government policies, says finance permanent secretary Lavaron Sangsnit. He said the government’s retail debt restructuring programme includes a three-year suspension of interest payments. The suspended interest during this period is to be compensated by a central pool, sourced equally from two contributions: a reduction in the Financial Institution Development Fund (FIDF) fee for banks from 0.46% of deposits to 0.23%; and resources from the respective financial institutions at a 50:50 ratio.
10. TAT to encourage US airlines to undertake first-ever direct flights to TH, after FAA gave favourable evaluation of TH’s aviation safety and is expected to be upgraded to Category 1 from 2.Finance Minister said the ministry is merely studying the possibility of raising VAT rate, not that it’s going to raise to 15% as widely reported.

Bonus 5

1. Shippers say export uptick likely in 2024: Strong performance for first 10 months. Thai exports are expected to increase by 1-3% in 2025 and 4% this year, says the Thai National Shippers’ Council (TNSC). Chaichan Charoensuk, chairman of TNSC, believes Thai export projections for 2024 will be upgraded, exceeding the initial estimate of 1-2%. The adjustment is attributed to strong exports in the first 10 months, which grew by 4.9%, he said. Bangkok Post
2. Rice shipment goal for 2025 set at 7.5m tonnes: In the first 10 months of 2024, Thailand exported 8.35 million metric tonnes of rice. The Commerce Ministry set a rice export target of 7.5 million metric tonnes for 2025, declining from an estimated 10 million metric tonnes this year. Arada Fuangtong, director-general of the Department of Foreign Trade, said for the first 11 months this year, rice exports rose by 14% year-onyear to 9.27 million metric tonnes. The volume is expected to reach 10 million metric tonnes with value of at least US$6 billion. Bangkok Post
3. Rail delay prompts UTA-EEC talks: Some projections to be revised down. The delay in constructing the highspeed railway connecting three airports has U-Tapao International Aviation Company (UTA) preparing to negotiate with the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), requesting an easing of some requirements in the expansion of U-tapao airport as the number of passengers would be affected by the absence of mass transit. Bangkok Post
4. Thailand agrees first FTA with trade bloc in Europe: Thailand and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) plan to ink a free-trade agreement in January next year, with the goal of increasing export opportunities and attracting more European investors to Thailand, the Ministry of Commerce said. Bangkok Post
5. Trends drive job openings: While the manufacturing and automotive sectors are on the decline, hotels, restaurants and IT firms are reporting a surge in hiring. Massive layoffs at large factories, including a report that Nissan is set to axe or relocate more than 1,000 workers in Thailand, have disrupted the labour market. Bangkok Post