Thailand is less vulnerable to any spike in global bond yields stemming from policy normalization by the U.S. Federal Reserve due to its low reliance on external sources for debt financing and its high foreign reserves, the Bank of Thailand chief said, Bloomberg News reported. Bond yields in Thailand would be less exposed to “another taper tantrum” than those in some other emerging economies, Governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput told a virtual conference Wednesday organized by the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
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Thai Airways International reported a net profit in the first half of 2021, its first since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, thanks to a restructure of its business as part of a rehabilitation plan, although uncertainty still clouds its passenger flight services, Nikkei Asia reported. Thai Airways posted on Monday a consolidated net profit of 11.1 billion baht ($333 million), reversing a 28 billion baht loss it recorded in the same period in the last year. This was due to contributions to its bottom line from selling off assets and adjusting employees' benefits.
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When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit Thailand in the first half of 2020, forcing the government to impose lockdowns and travel bans that effectively killed the crucial tourism industry, many economists foresaw a contraction of 10% or more for the year, the Asia Times reported. But Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) shrank just 6.1% in 2020, painful but not as bad as expected with the loss of the kingdom’s US$60 billion tourism industry, which normally accounts for around 18% of GDP.
Many small and medium-sized enterprises, the backbone of Thailand’s economy, are struggling with crushing debt loads that could force them out of business as the latest wave of Covid infections dims the prospects for an economic recovery, Bloomberg News reported. “This round is much worse than last year, and millions of operators are suffering,” said Sangchai Theerakulwanich, chairman of the Federation of Thai SME, who submitted a proposal last month for the government to boost support to smaller businesses.
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Thailand’s central bank held its benchmark rate unchanged on Wednesday, signaling a need to preserve policy space as the country grapples with its biggest wave of Covid cases and a weakening outlook for the tourism-reliant economy, Bloomberg News reported. The Bank of Thailand’s rate setting committee unanimously decided to hold rates at a record low of 0.5% for a ninth straight meeting, as expected by all 25 economists in a Bloomberg survey. The committee “stands ready to use limited policy space at the most-effective timing,” Bank of Thailand Assistant Governor Titanun Mallikamas said.
Thai Airways International Pcl on Wednesday said that its acting chief executive officer, Chansin Treenuchagron, had resigned, Reuters reported. The airline's chief of human resources, Suvadhana Sibunruang, will take over as acting CEO, the company said in a statement. The announcement comes after a court approved the airline's restructuring plan. Chansin will remain as an administrator of the airline's business rehabilitation plan. Read more.
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Thai Airways International Pcl won court approval on Tuesday to restructure a debt load of $12.9 billion as the airline, which is already in bankruptcy protection, seeks to turn around its fortunes, Reuters reported. The court ruling removes the last hurdle to implementation of the plan, seen as critical for the carrier which last year posted a record loss of about $4.5 billion. In its order, the Central Bankruptcy Court in Bangkok said it approved the rehabilitation plan. It did not make any changes to the plan that had been approved by creditors.
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A series of coronavirus outbreaks in Thai factories is raising concerns that the export sector could be hit hard, threatening to further undermine an economy as it struggles to recover from the pandemic's crippling blow to the crucial tourism industry, Reuters reported. The virus has swept through over 130 factories, including those supplying international brands, with more than 7,100 cases across 11 provinces, making manufacturing one of the top sources of infections along with prisons and construction camps.
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Indorama Ventures Ltd (IVL) has competed the acquisition of the recycled polyethylene terephthalic (R-PET) assets of CarbonLite Holdings and its subsidiaries in Dallas, Texas, the Thailand-listed producer said today, ICIS.com reported. IVL has completed all formalities with regards to the acquisition "and has taken charge of the plant effective from 11 June 2021", it said in a filing to the Stock Exchange of Thailand. IVL won a $63.8m bid for CarbonLite's Dallas rPET facility during a May 24 auction. CarbonLite in March this year filed for chapter 11 protection in the U.S.
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Thai Airways International Plc said that the Central Bankruptcy Court will decide on its restructuring proposal on June 15, after Friday's hearing was postponed to allow for the assessment of complaints filed by creditors against the plan, the Bangkok Post reported. "Creditors filed two complaints against the restructuring plan, which the court accepted," the airline said in a statement.
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