Japan-Thailand Business Forum

Japan Thailand Business Forum is an association which consists of persons who have once worked in Thailand as executives of various Japanese companies as well as government offices located in Thailand.

It was organized in August 2002 for a purpose of exchanging frank opinions with Thai authorities in regard to tourism, economy, investment and other various subjects.

Chao Phraya River, Bangkok

Thailand Review Apr. 2012 (extracted)

Economy

In Bank of Thailand's monthly financial and economic report (issued March 30th for February), exports were worth US$18.6 billion in February (up 1.2%, compared to the same month in the previous year, up US$3.1 billion on the previous period), and imports US$16.6 billion (up 8.2% similarly, up US$1.6 billion similarly). Flood damage is gradually beginning to clear up, growth in imports of consumer goods and capital goods is picking up speed, and the industrial production index is continuing to improve. The balance of trade was a US$2 billion surplus, and the foreign currency reserve at the end of February stood at US$180.4 billion (up US$1.8 billion from the previous month).

On March 25th, the Thai Finance Ministry’s Treasury Department released an economic growth forecast for this year of between 5.0% and 6.0%. The mid-way mark is 5.5%, an upward revision from the previous forecast made in December of last year. Based on domestic flood recovery expenditure and recovery in the production sector, the growth rate forecasts have been revised upwards. In 2012, domestic demand will become the driving force behind economic growth, and private sector demand expenditure in particular is expected to grow 4.5% year on year. Replacement demand stemming from capital goods that were lost in the flooding, as well as government initiatives, such as the raising of the minimum wage level and the rice loan schemes, are contributing to increased consumption.

The Thai Ministry of Commerce's Bureau of Trade and Economic Indices announced on April 3rd that the consumer price index (CPI) increase rate for March was up 3.45%, compared to the same month in the previous year (food and beverages up 7.07%, non-food products up 1.23%), marking 30 months of positive growth. The core CPI for March (excluding perishables and energy) was 2.77% up on the same month in the previous year, 29 months of positive growth. The gradual economic recovery in the wake of the end of the flood damage has brought about a normalization of commodity prices.

Politics

On April 1st, the minimum wage levels in Thailand were raised. In the capital, Bangkok, and in seven surrounding provinces, the minimum wage level has been raised to 300 baht per day, and has been raised by 40% in the other 70 provinces. The Thai government plans to increase the daily rate to 300 baht throughout the country by 2013. Meanwhile, in order to mitigate the impact of the higher wage levels, the Ministries of Labor, Finance and Industry have introduced a series of measures in support of small and medium sized enterprises, such as low interest financing by the Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Development Bank, and corporate tax holidays for companies that replace ageing plant and equipment.

A draft proposal for national reconciliation, drafted by the National Constitutional Research Institute at the request of the Lower House Special Committee on Reconciliation, was presented to parliament for deliberation on April 4th. The proposal identifies the September, 2006, coup d’état as the cause of the current friction, and calls for a re-examination of the legal proceedings against those connected to the former Thaksin administration, as well as an amnesty for those arrested and prosecuted during the period of political turmoil. The opposition Democratic Party has voiced its complete opposition to the proposal, describing it as a move designed to lead into a pardon for former prime minister Thaksin.