Govt lambastes US for TIP downgrade: The government has expressed disappointment and criticised the United States’ decision to downgrade Thailand in its annual worldwide human trafficking report. Bangkok Post
State Railway to sell bidding envelope for Bt78b Southern Purple Line, 6 contracts in total, from 5-7 Oct. CK, STEC, UNIQ, and ITD are expected to participate.
Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to announce qualified bidders for community solar PPA from total 246 applicants on July 9, bidding results end of year, ACE & NER among top contenders, Tabloid.
State bonds sell out quickly on first day: Government savings bonds worth a total value of 10 billion baht, which were on offer on Krungthai Bank’s (KTB) Pao Tang mobile application, were fully subscribed to within less than three hours on the first day of subscriptions yesterday. Bangkok Post
The cabinet has approved a proposal to procure 20m doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid vaccine.
Total claims for Covid insurance ballooned to Bt1.77b in 1H21 from Bt588m as of May 15, says the Office of the Insurance Commission (OIC) secretary-general Suthiphon Thaveechaiyagarn.
Fetco suggests government raise public debt ceiling: The Federation of Thai Capital Market Organizations (Fetco) has suggested the government consider raising the public debt ceiling from 60% of GDP because the country requires more economic relief funds amid a worsening pandemic and the possibility of a delayed reopening. Bangkok Post
Taking stock: The Finance Ministry is mulling a tax on share sales by individual investors on the Thai bourse as it is desperate for revenue. A plan to introduce a tax on the sale of shares by individual investors on the local bourse is part of the Finance Ministry’s tax reform agenda, says Revenue Department director-general Ekniti Nitithanprapas. Bangkok Post
TCG urges central bank to expand loan limits: Thai Credit Guarantee Corporation (TCG) is proposing the Bank of Thailand consider expanding the level of loans TCG is guaranteeing for borrowers of the amended soft loan scheme from 100 billion baht as the guaranteed amount is nearing the ceiling. TCG acting general manager Wasukarn Visansawatdi said the central bank asked TCG to guarantee up to 100 billion baht of the Bank of Thailand’s soft loan scheme worth 250 billion, allocated to help businesses and individuals survive the impact of the Covid19 pandemic. Bangkok Post
The 50 richest Thais added US$28b in combined wealth over last 15 months, with the Chearavanont brothers of CP Group growing their wealth by almost $3b despite the pandemic, Forbes.
