Economy

Thailand’s passenger car sales drop by over 44% year-on-year

Published

2 weeks ago

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Maya Taylor

Thailand’s passenger car sales drop by over 44% year-on-year | The Thaiger

PHOTO: Connor Williams on Unsplash

Thailand’s domestic car sales dropped by over 21% last month, with passenger car sales plummeting by over 44% year-on-year. The Bangkok Post reports that the resurgence of the Covid-19 virus late last year has affected consumer confidence and buying power. The sale of commercial vehicles is also down by 5.4% year-on-year.

Surasak Suthongwan from Toyota Motor Thailand, says people are worried about the second outbreak’s impact on employment prospects and the economy as a whole, which is putting them off buying cars. He says that the automotive sector is still trying to recover from the effects of the original outbreak of the virus and that other sectors, such as the tourism industry, are at a standstill.

“Those factors caused domestic car sales to drop and the company is closely monitoring the economic situation and the pandemic.”

Toyota has a 32.2% share of the domestic market and domestic sales this month are also expected to be affected by the ongoing crisis. However, the automotive firm says it expects the government’s stimulus campaigns will help the economy and give consumer spending a boost.

SOURCE: Bangkok Post

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News Categories: Economy Thailand

20 Comments

Toby Andrews

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 11:47 am

I’m delighted.
Thais cannot afford cars now. I want them on bicycles wearing straw hats.
They had it good, but killed the golden goose with their double pricing, swindling, and blind obedience to stupid dictators, with unreasonable bans.
They still have exports but Vietnam is in competition now.
It’s the Thais’ destiny. One bike, one straw hat. one paddy field.

Reply
- Fred glue
  
  Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 12:27 pm
  
  I’m still laughing, I fell of my chair, ??
  
  Reply
- Steve
  
  Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 1:22 pm
  
  All so true, but you forgot to mention the one buffalo!
  
  Reply
- Maverick
  
  Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 3:08 pm
  
  Clearly your experience with that bar girl must have left some scars……speedy recovery chap.
  
  Reply
Glenn

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 11:57 am

and 83 people died… this is your govt working on your behalf (not).

No. They are working for the UN Agenda21/2030. YOU don’t matter.

You have been lied to, are being lied to, and will be lied to until you must ride a bicycle instead of your car, and live in a cement box – because this is what some maniacs who run the show want.

Reply
Andy W

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 12:00 pm

Exports will take a hit as well due to the global financial crisis.

Reply
- Issan John
  
  Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 12:15 pm
  
  Exports already have, Andy W – not just cars, but pretty much everything except food.
  
  Even if tourism recovers to some extent with the removal of quarantine, it’ll still be affected by the recession as will everything else – the sooner what can be salvaged is, though, with a vaccine roll-out, the better things will start to become.
  
  Reply
  - Maverick
    
    Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 3:12 pm
    
    The world will still eat plenty of rice, impact on Thai exports is minimal they still enjoy a healthy current account surplus every month which will continue to keep the Baht strong. The US-China spat is greater cause for concern as Thai exports feed into the China-US supply chain, although China will start to move more manufacturing to SE Asia to get round US Tariffs which will help Thailand.
    
    Reply
    - EdwardV
      
      Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 10:50 pm
      
      A strong Baht actually hurts exports. The US-China spat is only going to get worse as Biden unsurprisingly is turning up the dial (not down as many incorrectly expected). However China has little desire to move manufacturing to other SE Asia countries since their main objective of the industry is domestic employment. Things like sales and profits are a distance second and even more distance third in importance. It’s not really the Chinese who are moving all the manufacturing out of China, it’s everyone else. The Japanese, Americans, Europeans, Taiwanese and such. It will help Thailand in that regard. However a 44% drop year to year is huge and should be sending off alarm bells. Says there are much deeper problems inside the Thai economy because of shutdown.
      
      Reply
  - James R
    
    Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 9:44 pm
    
    Issan John
    
    All you need now is the vaccine, you might get a little bit more than 200,000 doses you are getting now/soon but it might be in a years time from now.
    
    Join the queue or make your own.
    
    Reply
*Sigh*

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 1:38 pm

What’s with all the negativity towards Thailand. Every country has its goods and bass, no country can please everyone with everything.

I don’t see people complaining about double pricing in other SEA as much as Thailand. Even Singapore practice that at places like Garden by the Bay or have outrageous laws (can’t walk naked in your own house where outsiders can see you). Guess no one can complain or you could get jailed ! Maybe you want that kind of law in Thailand too ?

Reply
Isan John

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 3:05 pm

The market has bottomed out soon we will see a V-shaped recovery and stunning growth

Reply
- Dreqo
  
  Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 6:49 pm
  
  Lmfao, now I know for absolute certain you’re simply just trolling when you comment on here, John. Well played.
  
  Reply
Robert Bunker

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 3:13 pm

Is Thailand simply leading the world in rejecting rampant, runaway consumerism and embracing the environment in a more mature manner than Extinction Rebellion?
No?
Thought not.?

Reply
Siso

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 3:14 pm

Wishful thinking as always johnny.
Nothing will recover and be back on track until 2022 and by that time the whole fucking corrupt system will have collapse here and in other places. Most businesses don’t have time anymore and are drowning as we speak, there has to be more money borrowed and printed which inflates everything and makes it even worse, ill have to agree that we are on the brink of collapse

Reply
Jim kelly

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 8:38 pm

Just watch.. the worst is still o come!! This is just the tip of the Thai economic collapse!! Enjoy it Mr. Chanocha… Maybe your mate big ears will share some his fortune and assist the country??

Reply
lou

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 10:20 pm

Hello Edi what did I tell y about Thai economy & their stats, do y still think only tourism affected ? Xe are still far from reaching the bottom, say with optimism end year !!!! Stay out of this damaged world, protected and warm, keep critics aside its more comfortable

Reply
Amy Sukwan

Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 9:02 am

I think historians will look back on the Covid response as the greatest man made catastrophe in history. Thailand has sold the farm on vaccines saving the day, despite huge logistical hurdles and unaddressed concerns about both safety and efficacy of said vaccines. But hey it’s some billionaire s pet project and he can buy all the news he wants and at least he’s getting richer, right? Really though depressions happen because of negative feedback loops rippling through all of society and reinforcing themselves. So the cops lost tea money from tourists means he doesn’t buy a new car for his mistress, eventually Toyota furloughs some workers sitting in empty showrooms, and they stop paying rent. Eventually they might all really be in rice fields with straw hats! At least there’s enough to eat and it’s not cold…

Reply
Graham White

Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 9:19 am

I’ve never been able to understand how Thais can afford new cars here because the prices are not much less than UK where the average income is about 4 or 5 times higher.

Reply
Mr cynic

Thursday, February 25, 2021 at 1:56 am

Car sales have tumbled globally.
Hardly surprising in the present situation.thailand is no different to most other countries worldwide in relation to this.

Reply

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Maya Taylor

A seasoned writer, with a degree in Creative Writing. Over ten years' experience in producing blog and magazine articles, news reports and website content.

Coronavirus (Covid-19)

Thai industry representatives push government on vaccine passport policy

Published

2 days ago

Thursday, March 4, 2021

Maya Taylor

Thai industry representatives push government on vaccine passport policy | The Thaiger

PHOTO: Lukas on Unsplash

Industry representatives are urging the Thai government to press ahead with the adoption of a vaccine passport scheme to re-ignite international tourism. The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking is also pushing for Thailand to form travel bubble arrangements with countries where Covid-19 infection rates are low to moderate.

Kalin Sarasin from the Thai Chamber of Commerce and a JSCCIB member points to the Digital Green Pass being introduced by the EU, which allows vaccinated people to travel more freely. He believes Thailand should introduce something similar.

“JSCCIB is confident a vaccine passport would boost economic sentiment. Many countries have already started mass vaccination regimes for their people.”

(Video below about the current world and Thailand Covid travel situation)

He adds that private companies should be allowed to purchase and distribute vaccines to employees in order to accelerate the national vaccine rollout.

The push for a vaccine passport scheme follows confirmation from the Thai PM that he has ordered a study into the idea. However, Prayut Chan-o-cha points out that nobody knows how effective such a scheme would be. The idea does have its critics, particularly among rights’ groups and doctors, who say there is not yet enough data to show that vaccines prevent transmission.

A limited number of Covid-19 vaccines have arrived in Thailand and have been distributed to 13 priority provinces. Healthcare workers and vulnerable groups are among the first people to be inoculated.

Supant Mongkolsuthree, a JSCCIB member from the Federation of Thai Industries, says a vaccine passport policy is one more way to restore tourism and, as vaccines are rolled out in the Kingdom, the economy has a chance at recovery.

“JSCCIB believes the economy is recovering. The vaccine will gradually build up confidence among business people.”

SOURCE: Bangkok Post

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Thailand

Cannabis could generate 8 billion baht for Thai pharmaceutical industry by 2025, expert says

Published

3 days ago

Tuesday, March 2, 2021

Caitlin Ashworth

Cannabis could generate 8 billion baht for Thai pharmaceutical industry by 2025, expert says | The Thaiger

Cannabis could become a major cash crop in Thailand. An expert says the cannabis-based medicinal products could generate up to 8 billion baht for the Thai pharmaceutical industry by 2025. Medical cannabis has been legal in Thailand for the past couple years, but recently the government agreed to allow parts of the plant with very, low traces of the “high-inducing” component tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, to be in medicinal products and food.

Cannabis-based medicines have been used as palliative treatment for some cancer patients in Thailand. Last year, nearly 1 million patients used cannabis-based medicines, according to an economist at Kasetsart University’s Agricultural and Resource Economics Department, Ravissa Suchato.

Around 1.2 billion baht worth of medical cannabis was consumed last year, according to Ravissa, who led a recent study on the economic impact of commercial cannabis cultivation in Thailand. If the average consumption rises as expected, medical cannabis could generate 8 billion baht within the next 5 years.

“We believe marijuana has great potential as a cash crop because more patients will start using marijuana-based drugs soon.”

In the past, Thai officials have discussed the opportunity to tap into the global cannabis market by exporting medical cannabis, but Ravissa says Thailand still has a way to go.

“Globally, the recreational use of marijuana has risen a lot faster than pharmaceutical use, so the prospect of exporting marijuana-based medicines from Thailand is still a long way off.”

Parts of the cannabis plant that are rich in THC, like the buds, are still illegal and classified as a Category 5 narcotic. Trafficking the plant is still heavily criminalised. Just over the past few days, border patrol police in the Northeastern province Nakhon Pathom seized hundreds of kilograms of dried, compressed cannabis believed to have been trafficked across the Mekong River from Laos and destined for the South, possibly to Malaysia.

SOURCE: Thai PBS

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Business

The social media giants in battle with ‘old’ media and world governments | VIDEO

Published

1 week ago

Friday, February 26, 2021

The Thaiger

“The rules signal greater willingness by countries around the world to rein in big tech firms such as Google, Facebook and Twitter that the governments fear have become too powerful with little accountability.”

India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take down social media accounts it deemed, well, anti social.

The rules require any social media company to create three roles within India… a “compliance officer” who ensures they follow local laws; a “grievance officer” who addresses complaints from Indian social media users; and a “contact person” who can actually be contacted by lawyers and other aggrieved Indian parties… 24/7.

The companies are also being made to publish a compliance report each month with details about how many complaints they’ve received and the action they took.

They’ll also be required to remove ‘some’ types of content including “full or partial nudity,” any “sexual act” or “impersonations including morphed images”

The democratisation of the news model, with social media as its catalyst, will continue to baffle traditional media and governments who used to enjoy a level of control over what stories get told.

The battles of Google and Facebook, with the governments of India and Australia will be followed in plenty of other countries as well.

At the root of all discussions will be the difference between what governments THINK social media is all about and the reality about how quickly the media landscape has changed. You’ll get to read about it first, on a social media platform… probably on the screen you’re watching this news story right now.

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