Showing 1 - 10 of 19
Thailand must manage debt to progress
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 22/01/2026
» This article may be read as a continuation of my previous piece, Year of the Debt. That article focused mainly on household debt, which has already risen beyond the ability of Thai consumers to repay.
Making Cambodia pay for border row
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 02/10/2025
» What I am covering today is a sensitive issue that all economic research houses, both government and private, avoid talking about. That is the economic impact of the border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia.
GDP figures don't reflect real situation
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 26/12/2024
» This article is the last for 2024. I have made many bad predictions about the Thai economy throughout the year. Many became true, like the contracting credit market, the NPL explosion, and an ineffective cash handout programme. Many have not become true (or have they?). One was GDP growth. Instead of shrinking as I predicted, GDP growth rates improved from quarter to quarter. They were 1.6% for Q1, 2.2% for Q2, and 3.0% for Q3. And it is expected to be 3.5% for Q4 to fulfil the annual 2.6% growth projection.
BoT is absolutely right in holding rates
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 22/02/2024
» The whole country -- the government, its economic agencies, private economic research houses, the private sector, and academics -- is accusing the Bank of Thailand (BoT) of being stubborn for refusing to lower interest rates to support the weak economy, aka, the economy in crisis.
Downsides to digital cash handout plan
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 21/09/2023
» I announced in a previous article that today's story would focus on liquidity and debt. But after careful consideration, I have decided to postpone this for another fortnight. The main reason being that I want to wait for the Bank of Thailand's economic data release for August due out on Sept 29.
Why do I smell tom yum kung cooking?
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 10/08/2023
» Readers who follow my bi-weekly economic column will have no doubt that the tom yum kung I am referring to is not a traditional Thai soup dish but the financial crisis of 1997.
Part 1: The country needs to change
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 09/03/2023
» Before I start the article, I would like to report that Thailand's economic performance in January 2023 was no better than the last quarter of 2022, when GDP growth was merely 1.4%.
Thai economic prospects far from rosy
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 09/02/2023
» Logically, one would imagine that 2023 would be a much better year than 2022. Covid is over in every corner of the earth and economic activities resume. The world oil price is below US$80 (2,677 baht) per barrel and inflation is coming down. At the first meeting of 2023, the Fed raises interest rates to merely 25 basis points as opposed to the 50-75 basis points for each meeting in 2022.
An Asean country might be near a crisis
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 20/10/2022
» I am talking about an imaginary country which is a member of Asean. This country may or may not exist. To avoid unnecessary negative repercussions, this country shall remain nameless and be referred to as country "N" with its currency "D". This country is the star of Asean with a 5-year average GDP growth rate of 7% prior to the Covid outbreak.
BMA sorely needs financial advisers
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 22/09/2022
» On Sept 7, 2022, the Central Administrative Court ordered the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority (BMA) and its wholly owned subsidiary Krungthep Thanakom (KT) to pay Bangkok Mass Transit System Public Company (BTS) back overdue Operating and Maintenance (O&M) fees on extensions 1 and 2 of the Green Line (Sky Train) in the amount of 11.75 billion baht within 180 days.