Government agency ups 2021 foreign arrivals prediction to 200,000

An agency under the Ministry of Finance has increased its 2021 tourist arrivals forecast to 200,000. The Fiscal Policy Office had previously stated that it expected 180,000 foreign arrivals by the end of the year. According to a Bangkok Post report, Pornchai Thiraveja from the FPO says this now looks likely to increase.

During the first 2 weeks of November, following Thailand’s re-opening, the country welcomed 50,000 international arrivals, taking the total number of foreign arrivals this year to 100,000. Most of those were from the US, followed by the United Arab Emirates and Germany. On November 1, Thailand re-opened with minimal quarantine for vaccinated international arrivals from 63 approved countries. Pornchai says additional costs related to Covid-19 have increased average spending per person from 50,000 to 60,000 baht.

Meanwhile, the FPO predicts that 2022 will bring 6 million foreign tourists to the Kingdom, but Pornchai points out that if Chinese nationals are permitted to travel again, that will increase to 7 million. He adds that the introduction of any new economic stimulus measures will depend on the severity of the Covid-19 situation. Pornchai believes the virus can be contained, but says the government will introduce new stimulus campaigns if necessary.

The director-general of the FPO believes exports will drive economic recovery this year and next, with Thai exports benefiting from the recovery of the global economy. Pornchai says Thailand’s economy is expected to grow by 1% this year and 4% during 2022. He believes government spending of around 3.1 billion baht during the fiscal year of 2022 will boost the economy. Out of the 500 billion baht the government borrowed under the emergency decree, it still has half remaining.

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SOURCE: Bangkok Post