• OPINION

  Thailand's economy is headed for new recession

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 25/04/2019

  » The key difference between a politician and an economist is that a politician establishes a goal, while an economist analyses the means to achieve that goal. For politicians, the ultimate goal is to control a society by becoming the government, and the means to achieve such goals are through laws and regulations.

• OPINION

  Does Thailand need 'Helicopter Money'?

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 09/05/2019

  » I first heard of the term "Helicopter Money" when I was in graduate school studying economics. The concept belongs to a famous Nobel Prize-winning economist, Milton Friedman, and is simple. A government supplies large amounts of money to the public, as if the money is being scattered from a helicopter. People then use the money to buy things.

• OPINION

  Productivity slump behind Thailand's economic woes

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 23/05/2019

  » Many of you might be waiting to read about an effective "helicopter money" policy to boost the Thai economy as I mentioned in my previous article. Of course, I have reached my conclusion on that strategy but I beg readers to wait and read today's article first. The reason is that without properly understanding the "real" economic problems, a demand-stimulating policy such as helicopter money would become useless and could do more harm than good.

• OPINION

  Don't neglect the Ministry of Industry

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 20/06/2019

  » Turn on the news. There is nothing much to watch except for Thai politics and the formation of the new cabinet. First, it is about the ministerial posts to be allocated to each coalition party. Then, the allocation of the posts within the parties. Finally, the specific names for each position.

• OPINION

  Could the baht strengthen even further?

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 04/07/2019

  » Just the other morning before I woke up, I dreamed that I was in line at a bank waiting to change my Thai baht into US dollars for an overseas trip. Once I got to the teller, she told me that today's baht-to-dollar exchange rate was 25.8 and asked how many dollars I wanted. I asked her to repeat the exchange rate again and she confirmed the rate of 25.8 baht to the dollar. I told myself that this must be a dream, and I woke up.

• OPINION

  Online trading spells massive job losses

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 18/07/2019

  » By writing about Sampheng, Bangkok's premier wholesale market, this column does not want to stress the weakness of the economy. It is pointless to keep whining about the sluggishness of the economy as it is already a well-known fact. Even the government can see the true picture of the economy by simply looking at its tax revenues. Poor-performing businesses do not pay taxes and jobless people also do not pay taxes.

• OPINION

  HK protest stems from economic plight

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 15/08/2019

  » My column today was supposed to be an analysis of the Thai economic outlook for the remaining half-year of 2019. However, the ongoing massive upheaval in Hong Kong changed my mind.

• OPINION

  Is it all the Bank of Thailand's fault?

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 12/09/2019

  » Currently, the two most pressing economic issues in Thailand are the appreciation of the baht and the high level of household debt.

• OPINION

  When honesty really is the best policy

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 24/10/2019

  » The International Monetary Fund (IMF), my alma mater, appointed a new chief on Oct 1. The new Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, suddenly changes the "everything is okay" view on the world economy to "the world is about to collapse".

• OPINION

  Take economic data with a grain of salt

  News, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 07/11/2019

  » Originally, I planned to write an article titled "Albert Einstein and baht exchange rate". Then I said to myself, "Nope, let's not write another serious article this week". So, I decided to go for a lighter one about international rankings and ratings which the government often cites to reiterate that the Thai economy is in good shape. I never have understood why governments like to do this. Nobody cares about these figures. They care about their businesses, their jobs and their debts.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Next Last