Showing 1 - 3 of 3
Travel scheme farce
Oped, Editorial, Published on 07/07/2025
» The rollout of the "Tiew Thai Khon La Krung" campaign, or Thailand Travel Co-pay scheme, last week has proved to be unmitigated disaster, with no resolution in sight. This embarrassing episode reflects not only gross incompetence, but entrenched political pettiness among policy-makers.
Monetary policy really needs to tighten in Japan
Oped, Koichi Hamada, Published on 12/11/2024
» Last month, returning to Japan for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, I was struck by how significantly prices had increased. In February 2020, a simple lunch in downtown Tokyo cost about JP¥1,000, then the equivalent of about $10 (324 baht); today, it costs more like JP¥2,000. To some extent, this mirrors the experience in the US, where, even as inflation moderates, prices remain well above their pre-pandemic levels. The difference is that Japan has also experienced a sharp currency depreciation, which benefits foreign visitors: that JP¥2,000 bill translated to just $13.
Stimulus packages need paradigm shift
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 03/10/2024
» Ever wonder why Thailand's economic growth is consistently lower than its peers? Even with a flood of foreign tourists of 28.1 million (154.4% growth) in 2023, our GDP growth was 1.9% compared to 5.5% in the Philippines, 5% in both Indonesia and Vietnam, and 3.7% in Malaysia. The growth figure for the first half of this year of 1.9% is far worse than many of our Asean friends.