Five important project auctions in EEC within 8 months. These will use PPP fast-track under Art.44, said Kanit Sangsuphan, head of the Finance Ministry’s working group to enhance private investment. (Thai Rath, 6/3/17)
Top private sector group predicts 3.5-4% GDP growth. The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB) has kept its key economic forecasts unchanged, citing threats of external risks that could impede recovery. The JSCCIB is maintaining its forecast of Thai economic growth at 3.5-4% in 2017. It is also keeping to its forecast of this year’s export growth at 1-3% and inflation at 1-2%. (Bangkok Post, 8/3/17)
National power plan revisions afoot. Energy policymakers will revise the national power development plan (PDP 2015-2036) in order to generate sufficient power for the country if plans to develop the two coal-fired power plants in the southern region – in Krabi and Thepha district in Songkhla province – are further delayed or scrapped. (Bangkok Post, 9/3/17)
BoT: No push from US rate hike. MPC expected to hold rate steady this year. Even if the US Federal Reserve raises its policy rate at next week’s meeting – sooner than expected – it will not put any pressure on the Bank of Thailand’s currently accommodative monetary policy, says a central bank executive. (Prachachart Turakij / Bangkok Post, 10/3/17)
Borrowing to fund infrastructure projects. The government’s big-ticket infrastructure projects will be funded mainly by borrowings (60% of the total value of 1.7 trillion baht), The rest of the funding 20% will come from PPP, 10% from government’s budget, 2% from Thailand Future Fund IPO, and the remainder from state enterprise income. TFF IPO filing has been submitted to SEC, says Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong. (Post Today / Bangkok Post, 10/3/17)
Janet Yellen puts a rate hike on the table for this month. Fed Chair Janet Yellen dropped a strong hint Friday that an interest rate hike is on the way later this month. While leaving just enough wiggle room in case conditions should change, the central bank leader said economic improvements of late will be a big part of the discussion at the March 14-15 Federal Open Market Committee meeting. (CNBC, 6/3/17)
Fed’s Fischer says policy rule alone won’t drive best decisions. Monetary policy rules are “extremely useful” in shaping interest-rate decisions, but the complexity of the economy make human input a must, Federal Reserve Vice Chair Stanley Fischer on Friday. In remarks prepared for delivery to the University of Chicago Booth School of Business annual monetary policy forum, Fischer did not comment on the stance of U.S. monetary policy or the outlook for the economy. Instead, he presented an analysis of why the Fed should continue to rely on a committee to decide policy, rather than on a single policymaker or on a policy rule. (Reuters, 6/3/17)
Protectionism, financial vulnerability put modest global growth at risk: OECD. The world economy is expected to slightly pick up in 2017, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said Tuesday, warning that increasing protectionism and divergent financial policies are likely to cloud the growth prospects. In its latest economic outlook, the Paris-based OECD forecast global economic growth to stand at 3.3 percent this year compared to 3 percent in 2016. For 2018, the rate is set to quicken to at 3.6 percent. (CCTV, 8/3/17)
ECB sticks with its stimulus measures. The European Central Bank kept its quantitativeeasing programme unchanged yesterday, as policymakers gauge whether a recent jump in inflation will endure. The Governing Council reaffirmed its decision that monthly asset purchases will be reduced to €60 billion from April, compared with €80 billion now. (The Straits Times, 10/3/17)
EU, IMF to continue Greek debt talks next week. EU and International Monetary Fund negotiators said that they will continue talks next week with Greece in a bid to broker a deal on reforms that Athens must undertake to unlock the next stages of its international bailout program. (Financial Times, 10/3/17
