1. AOT’s board has approved the master plan for a 5-year expansion project at Suvarnabhumi airport, between 2025-2030, construction is expected to start from end of next year or early 2026.
2. National Credit Bureau (NCB) reported a 39% rise in NPLs for pickup truck loans in May, amounted to Bt138b, while special mention loans (60-90 days overdue) stood at Bt137.7b, +3.3% yoy.
3. The cabinet approved tax breaks yesterday to attract talented Thais to return from overseas, saying that qualified individuals who return to the country will enjoy a 17% personal income tax ceiling until 2029.
4. SEC said measures to enhance supervision of short-selling have reduced daily short-selling trading by almost 70%.
5. Government’s Bt122b supplementary budget to help fund the digital wallet scheme sailed thru parliament in final reading yesterday.
6. FTI said Thailand manufacturers, especially in steel, textiles, garment and consumer products, face shutters if Government fails to deal with influx of cheap Chinese goods following the launch of Temu, a Chinese online retailers, who offers as much as 90% discount to products sold on its platform.
7. Energy Policy and Planning Office (EPPO) board approved renewable power purchase combined 3,668mw, Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will set terms for auction and open bid next phase.
8. Dept of Port is expected to transfer Laem Chabang Port project phase 3 container terminal to GPC consortium (GULF, PTT Tank Terminal & China Harbour Engineering) in November, lifts handling capacity by 4m TEU p.a to 15m from current 11m.
9. PM delight as tourism rebounds: 34% visitor boost picked for year. Thailand welcomed 20 million foreign tourists during the first seven months of this year, about half the total for the same period before the spread of Covid-19. Bangkok Post
10. Blue is the colour as Senate takes centre stage: New Bhumjaithai-dominated Upper House set for major say on key issues despite Senate’s ‘scaled-back’ powers. All eyes will soon be on the new Senate and its key role in charter amendment and the political power-play among coalition parties in the government. Bangkok Post

Bonus +14

1. Govt dangles B50bn hybrid vehicle lure: Push to become new production centre. Thailand has approved new incentives to attract 50 billion baht of investment from hybrid electric vehicle manufacturers with bases in the country. Bangkok Post
2. Ministry hikes GDP growth forecast: Finance Ministry opts to revise its GDP growth forecast for 2024 up to 2.7% from 2.4%. The Finance Ministry has raised its GDP growth forecast for 2024 to 2.7% from 2.4% previously, due to the recovery in tourism, exports and consumption. Bangkok Post  Exports see decline in June as agricultural trade suffers: Exports in June shrank by 0.3%, representing the first contraction in three months, due to the end of the season for fruit products, the Commerce Ministry said on Friday, adding that it still expected exports to grow overall this year. Bangkok Post
3. PDMO to issue B40bn of savings bonds in August: The Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) is selling the final tranche of its savings bonds worth 40 billion baht in August, reduced from the original plan of 60 billion baht. According to Patchara Anuntasilpa, director-general of the PDMO, for fiscal year 2024 the PDMO has already issued 40 billion baht in savings bonds from the original target of 100 billion baht. Therefore, there was an outstanding balance of bonds worth 60 billion baht still to be issued. Bangkok Post
4. Thai rice exports jump 25% in first half of 2024: Thailand expects to export 8.2 million tonnes of rice this year, up from a previous forecast of 7.5 million, helped by demand from major markets and a weakening baht, according to the Commerce Ministry. Ronnarong Phoolpipat, directorgeneral of the Foreign Trade Department, said rice exports during the first half of the year amounted to 5.08 million tonnes worth 117.8 billion baht, up 25.1% and 55.5% year-on-year, respectively. Bangkok Post
5. Key budget bill passes House: MFP casts doubt on wallet growth boost. A supplementary bill which seeks to increase the budget for the current fiscal year by 122 billion baht to partially fund the government’s digital wallet handout scheme sailed through its third and final reading in the House of Representatives yesterday. Bangkok Post
6. Chinese influx puts factories at risk: Measures demanded to deal with Temu. Thai manufacturers may succumb to a new flood of cheap products from China if the government fails to launch measures to deal with the entry of Chinese online retailer Temu, says the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI). Bangkok Post
7. BOT reassesses lending rules: The Bank of Thailand (BoT) is reviewing its rules on loan-to-value ratios for mortgage loans and minimum credit card payments. Credit cardholders have been affected by the central bank’s increase in the minimum payment requirement from 5% to 8%. The Bank of Thailand is reviewing its regulations on loan-to-value (LTV) ratios for mortgage loans and minimum payments for credit cards amid the weakened debt servicing ability of individual borrowers. Bangkok Post
8. Global rice glut set to hit Thai exports: Thai rice exports are likely to be less than 8 million tonnes next year due to myriad risk factors hampering their competitiveness, which include a lack of research and development (R&D) for rice varieties, rising global supply, and the possibility of India lifting its rice export restrictions at year-end. Bangkok Post
9. Finance Ministry said >14m ppl signed up for govt’s digital wallet handout scheme on 1st day of registration, causing the system to crash within the first few hours of opening.
10. The power tariff, which will be capped at Bt4.18/unit to m/t electricity price til end of year, is likely to decrease early next year, as global demand for LNG is thought to be decreasing, which wud result in lower gas price.
11. Chadchart weighs BTS debt fix: Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt said yesterday that City Hall will need more time to consider how to deal with the debts it owes to Bangkok Mass Transit System Plc (BTSC), the operator of the BTS Skytrain. Bangkok Post
12. Power tariff set to fall by early 2025: Lower gas prices as LNG demand drops. The power tariff, which will be capped at 4.18 baht per kilowatt-hour (unit) to maintain electricity prices until the end of this year, is likely to decrease early next year, as global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is thought to be decreasing, which would result in lower gas prices. Bangkok Post
13. Central bank plans to further relax foreign exchange rules: The Bank of Thailand (BoT) plans to further ease foreign exchange regulations to support the ease of doing business and enhance the country’s foreign exchange ecosystem in the long run. Bangkok Post
14. SET eyeing more family business listings: The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) is providing an ecosystem that supports the listing of family businesses, saying the group is a strong foundation of the economy and has the potential for future growth. Family business is one of the target groups for the bourse to expand the listed company base, said chairman Kitipong Urapeepatanapong. Bangkok Post