29 May 2023
Thai Economy
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3 Apr 2023
12 Jan 2023
Based on its survey findings, KResearch views that Chinese New Year in 2023 will likely see brighter prospects compared to last year, driven by the easing of the COVID-19 situation and the “Shop Dee Mee Khuen” (shop and payback) scheme. However, consumers’ spending behavior must be adjusted to accommodate their available budget. This is because prices of Chinese New Year offering sets are likely to increase compared to last year due to persistently high production costs. ... Read more
1 Dec 2022
NCB’s data show that micro and super micro businesses remain fragile despite economic recovery... Read more
11 Oct 2022
September KR-ECI remained static from the previous month. Flooding presents risk to household income and spending ... Read more
8 Apr 2022
Every year, the Songkran festival is a time when Thais return to their home provinces to celebrate the Thai New Year with their families, while others go on day trips or overnight stays.... Read more
2 Feb 2021
While the Thai government relaxed its COVID-19-related measures in the Bangkok Metropolitan Area on February 1, 2021, and has announced a special holiday in February ( a three-day weekend), the COVID-19 situation has yet to be brought fully under control. Consumers’ purchasing power has long been affected by the pandemic and continues to be low as in the preceding year. Hence, spending during the 2021 Chinese New Year is expected to remain subdued, with consumers likely to be more sparing in their purchases when compared to the past few years. Based on KResearch’s findings, Bangkok residents plan to reduce spending in all activities, with certain activities like travel/merit making or giving cash gifts to be cancelled for this year. ... Read more
27 May 2020
During this time of every year, parents having school children have to set aside expenses for the new school year. These include tuition fees (for those sending their children to private and international schools), fees for education services and activities at schools, textbook, education equipment, and school uniform expenditures. However, their education expenses during the back-to-school season in 2020 differ from those seen in the previous years due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which has affected employment and income of some parents, who have had to close their businesses.... Read more
22 Jan 2020
The airborne PM2.5 has returned to become a serious issue since the start of 2020. The thickening smog, exceeding the standard safe level, prompted the Cabinet to approve measures to prevent and address the PM2.5 crisis on January 21, 2020. KResearch assessed the economic impacts of PM 2.5 particles, which are smaller than the standard size, and came up with the following estimates, covering opportunity costs on people’s health, tourism and other business sectors as a result of people’s behavioral changes to adapt to the situation.... Read more
19 Dec 2019
KResearch expects Bangkokians to spend approximately 29.8 billion Baht during the New Year festival 2020, a contraction of 3.2 percent YoY because people want to save their money and become more cautious in their spending. Moreover, some moved up their spending plans to benefit from the stimulus measures launched by the government and private sectors earlier this year. Nonetheless, if the government and private sectors introduce additional measures to energize the market sentiment during the New Year festival, people may decide to spend more and the overall spending may rebound to the same level as last year.... Read more
9 Oct 2019
The Cabinet, September 10, 2019, approved the 1,000-Baht cash handout as part of the government’s “Chim Shop Chai (Taste Shop Use)” program to stimulate domestic tourism, effective September 27 - November 30, 2019. Currently, a large number of people has begun to spend the cash giveaway in provinces where they signed up to the program. KResearch has conducted a survey on spending behavior of Thai households that have registered with phase 1 of the “Chim Shop Chai” program and the findings are as follows:... Read more
24 Sep 2019
The annual Kin Jae festival is helping feed Bangkok residents’ growing appetite for vegetarian food, with the participating population rising from 57.1 percent to 66.7 percent this year, reflecting a trend towards healthier lifestyles among the new generation. People are also eating less frequently each day. KResearch expects Kin Jae festival-related sales in Bangkok to reach 4.76 billion Baht in 2019, up 2.4 percent YoY. The growth is weaker than that of last year, because the slowing economy is prompting some Jae consumers to curb their spending during this year’s Kin Jae festival. ... Read more
7 May 2019
During the back-to-school season, consumers with school-age children normally have higher expenditures associated with their children’s education. KResearch’s survey finds that over 54.2 percent of parents are concerned about the amount of their cash flow to spend during the 2019 semester; however, the rate is lower than the result from the last year’s survey. The sample groups are worried about their financial liquidity for many reasons, including insufficient savings, increased daily expenses, more expensive educational supplies, and the fact that some of these parents have more children attending school. It is worth noting that around five percent of respondents who are concerned about their finances said their main source of funds for their children’s education comes from loans and pledging their valuable items.... Read more
20 Aug 2018
The Thai economy grew at an average of 4.8 percent p.a. during 1H18, supported by steady GDP growth of 4.6 percent p.a. in 2Q18. Domestic spending began to support the Thai economy in addition to exports and tourism amid rising agricultural supplies.... Read more
29 Jun 2018
According to Bank of Thailand data on household borrowing in 1Q18, the ratio of household debt to GDP dropped from 78.0 percent in 4Q17 to 77.6 percent (while the seasonally adjusted figure stood at 77.7 percent). However, the outstanding household debt in 1Q18 stepped up to THB12.17 billion, or 5.2 percent higher than the same period of 2017, compared to the 4.6-percent growth recorded in 4Q17. The surge of outstanding household debt was consistent with the high growth seen in retail lending of commercial banks and private consumption, especially spending for durable goods, namely homes and automobiles. ... Read more
8 May 2018
KResearch expects that parents in Greater Bangkok will spend around THB27.5 billion during the 2018 school year, up 1.9 percent YoY, showing a decrease in spending growth because the main spending items such as tuition remain unchanged. Additionally, most parents are spending cautiously on education-related merchandise, namely, school uniforms, books and school supplies by choosing cheaper products or buying in less quantity, compared to last year. In addition, the number of students in the 2018 school year is expected to be static versus the figures in 2017. ... Read more
4 May 2018
The 3-month Expected KR-ECI increased to 46.9 in April 2018 because households expected that their expenditures (excluding debt) would decline over the next three months after the Songkran spending spree and making tuition fee payments for their children.... Read more
KResearch thus expects that the number of Middle Eastern holidaymakers to Thailand will continue to shrink during the remainder of 2018. As a result, the number of Middle Eastern tourist arrivals will reach perhaps 7.58-7.79 million in 2018, shrinking 4.2-1.4 percent, against the 5.7 percent growth reported for 2017. It is expected that such tourists will spend around THB60.6- 62.5 billion, contracting 2.1-1.0 percent, versus the 8.3 percent growth recorded in 2017.... Read more
11 Apr 2018
In the second half of 2018, KResearch views that domestic tourism will continue to expand, thanks to the conducive domestic environment and the government’s project to promote the kingdom’s secondary destinations in 55 cities. In addition, hospitality operators including those engaging in hotel, lodging and airline businesses have organized a string of marketing campaigns to promote domestic travel, boosting the momentum of “Go Local” tourism. ... Read more
12 Mar 2018
According to a survey on household economic conditions for February, views of Thai households across the country toward economic conditions and the cost of living over the next three months remained unchanged. This is reflected in the 3-month Expected KR-ECI that was static at 47.1 in February. Households still had positive views toward income and employment, given the daily minimum wage rise slated for April 2018, while prices of some key agricultural produce, namely “Hom Mali” rice and cassava, have begun to increase. However, households were concerned about growing debt.... Read more
7 Nov 2017
The Thai economy has signaled growth in 2017, with satisfactory performance seen in exports and tourism that has caused many institutions to revise... Read more
11 Oct 2017
4 Apr 2017
Songkran spending may not be very flamboyant this year, with many impediments such as concern toward living costs, inconvenient travel, high ambient... Read more
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