Ministry looking at land windfall tax — The Finance Ministry has floated the idea of taxing landlords who benefit from skyrocketing land prices driven by the government’s large infrastructure developments. (Bangkok Post, 13/06/16)
Satellite fee structure revamp eyed — The government is considering a revamp of the operating fee structure for the satellite industry in a bid to make this aspect of the space economy generate greater benefits for the country, a government official said. (Bangkok Post, 13/06/16)
THE Commerce Ministry will continue to focus on government-to-government (G2G) contracts for the release of rice from stockpiles, as well as general rice auctions in the second half of the year after opening a big-lot bid for 2.24 million tonnes tomorrow. (The Nation, 14/06/16) A working panel will be set up by the government to closely monitor the progress of key infrastructure and water development projects and propose legal amendments to ease doing business. (Bangkok Post, 14/06/16)
China’s fiscal revenue rose 7.3 percent year on year to 1.546 trillion yuan (US$234.8 billion) in May, data from the Ministry of Finance showed on Monday. The revenue growth was down from the 14.4-percent gain posted for April. (Shanghaidaily, 13/06/16)
China’s retail sales of consumer goods grew 10 percent year on year in May, compared with the 10.1-percent growth for April, official data showed on Monday. In the first five months, retail sales were up 10.2 percent year on year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. (Xinhua, 13/06/16)
US retail sales in May beat expectations — US retail sales rose more than expected in May, official figures have shown, helped by an increase in online, clothing and sporting goods sales. Sales rose by 0.5% last month, after surging by 1.3% in April, according to the US Commerce Department. April’s figure was the strongest gain since March 2015, and a slowdown in May had been expected by economists. (BBC, 15/6/16)
Fed tells market: We’re taking summer off — The Federal Reserve sent a strong signal that it now expects only one interest rate hike this year, and the market now sees less than a 50 percent chance of even one rise by year-end. The U.S. central bank continued to lean toward hiking rates, but the Fed’s “dot plot,” which contains the interest rate forecasts of Fed officials, shows that six members now believe there will be just one rate rise this year, up from one member in March. Even though the central bank’s official forecast still shows two rate hikes, Fed watchers took the increase in sentiment for one hike as a more important indicator. (CNBC, 16/6/16)
US industrial production fell 0.4% in May vs. 0.2% drop expected — U.S. industrial production fell more than expected in May on a decline in utilities output and auto manufacturing, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday, a sign that the economy may be losing some steam in the second quarter. Industrial output declined 0.4 percent last month after a downwardly revised 0.6 percent increase in April. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast industrial production slipping 0.2 percent last month. (CNBC, 16/6/16)
U.S. crude oil stockpiles down less than expected –EIA — U.S. crude stocks fell last week, but the decline was smaller than anticipated, while gasoline stocks decreased sharply, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Crude inventories fell by 933,000 barrels in the last week, compared with analysts’ expectations for a decrease of 2.3 million barrels. (Reuters, 16/6/16
BOJ holds off on easing despite weak inflation, sparks yen spike — The Bank of Japan refrained from offering additional monetary stimulus on Thursday despite anemic inflation and weak global growth, sending the yen spiking to a two-year high that clouds an already darkening outlook for the economy. (Reuters, 17/6/16)
