Adjustment could save state B10bn a year — The Fiscal Policy Office (FPO) is considering reviewing the blanket living allowance for the elderly in order to cease paying the subsidy to those with sufficient income and reallocating this portion to others. (Bangkok Post, 27/6/16)
ASEAN to press RCEP to cut tariffs on 92% of goods — ASEAN countries will propose to the 16 member states of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) to eliminate tariffs on 92 per cent of trade in goods to promote economic integration of the grouping soon. (The Nation, 27/6/16)
TOT to pursue private partnerships for wireless broadband service — TOT will seek a possible partnership with private telecom operators and network equipment suppliers next month for its plan to introduce a wireless broadband service on the 2.3GHz spectrum, TOT president Montchai Noosong said (The Nation, 27/6/16)
Auction of 1.11 tonnes of rice expected to yield a good price — THE Rice Policy Management Committee yesterday agreed to sell 1.11 tonnes of rice to 29 traders, which should earn the country Bt11.54 billion. (The Nation, 28/6/16)
Bank of England says will take all necessary steps to ensure stability — The Bank of England said on Friday it would take all necessary steps to shield Britain’s economy from the shock decision by voters to pull the country out of the European Union which caused immediate turmoil on financial markets. (Reuters, 27/6/16)
Lagarde Says Brexit Impact Hangs on Policy Makers’ Next Move — International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said that the fallout from Britain’s vote to leave the European Union hinges on what policy makers do in coming days. Much of the outcome “is going to depend on certainty or uncertainty, predictability or lack of predictability — people going in a risk-off mode or considering that the situation is going to settle back,” Lagarde said Sunday, speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado in a moderated question-and-answer session. “At this point in time, policy makers, both in the U.K. and in Europe, are holding that level of uncertainty in their hands. And how they come out in the next few days is going to really drive the direction in which risk will go.” (Bloomberg, 27/6/16)
U.S. first-quarter GDP revised up, Brexit risk to outlook — U.S. economic growth slowed in the first quarter but not as sharply as previously estimated, and while there are signs of a pickup in the second quarter, analysts worry Britain’s vote to leave the European Union could hurt activity later this year. Gross domestic product increased at a 1.1 percent annual rate, rather than the 0.8 percent pace reported last month, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday in its third GDP estimate. The economy grew at a rate of 1.4 percent in the fourth quarter. (Reuters, 29/6/16)
U.S. consumer spending rises, Brexit casts shadow on outlook — Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, increased 0.4 percent last month after surging 1.1 percent in April. When adjusted for inflation, spending rose 0.3 percent after April’s 0.8 percent gain. (Reuters, 30/6/16)
Japan’s Retail Sales in May Unchanged, Showing Weak Recovery — Sales were flat in May from the previous month, when they dropped, the trade ministry reported Wednesday. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for no gain. Favorable factors included sales of machinery and equipment, while sectors including food and beverages were negative. From a year earlier, sales fell 1.9 percent, compared with a forecast decline of 1.6 percent in the survey. The biggest contributor to the drop was fuels, reflecting declines in oil prices. Even as oil prices have risen recently the level is still lower compared with last year.
U.S. crude stockpiles fall, gasoline builds as refiners boost output: EIA — U.S. crude oil stockpiles fell sharply last week and gasoline inventories posted an unseasonably surprise large build as refineries ramped up production, the U.S. Energy Department said on Wednesday. Crude inventories fell 4.1 million barrels in the week to June 24, the sixth consecutive week of drawdowns and bigger than the 2.4 million-barrel drop forecast by analysts and the 3.9 millionbarrel fall reported by industry group the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday. (Reuters, 30/6/16)
