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Balanced budget predicted for fiscal 2017
The government expects to have a balanced budget by fiscal year 2017, with the fiscal deficit narrowing each year until then, according to Chakkrit Parapuntakul, head of the Finance Ministry’s Public Debt Management Office.
The ministry is forecasting that the budget shortfall will drop to Bt300 billion in 2013, Bt270 billion in 2014, Bt200 billion in 2015 and Bt70 billion in 2016, he said yesterday.
The public-debt ratio will peak at about 52 per cent of gross domestic product in 2013, still well within the government’s limit of 60 per cent, he said.
The ministry’s assumptions have taken into account borrowing of Bt350 billion for water-management projects and Bt50 billion for the flood-insurance programme, Chakkrit said. – Bloomberg
Diesel tax cut extended by a month
The Cabinet approved the extension of tax reductions on diesel prices to the end of April to help consumers cope with higher global oil prices, said Pakdiharn Himathongkham, a deputy government spokesman.
The one-month extension will cut government revenue by about Bt9 billion, he said after a mobile Cabinet meeting in Phuket yesterday.
– Bloomberg
THAI fears EU levies to cost Bt300m
Thai Airways International, the nation’s largest carrier, said European emission levies on aviation might raise costs by as much as Bt300 million next year.
“We agree in principle that we need to curb carbon emission, but the implementation under the rules is not fair,” THAI president Piyasvasti Amranand said. He did not say whether the airline would increase fares to offset the fees.
The government has also complained to the European Union about the emissions charges, Piyasvasti said. China, India and the US have also objected to the EU’s decision to add airlines to a cap-and-trade system designed to pare pollution because of concerns about costs and jurisdictions.
– Bloomberg
Top Maritime gets Bt324m loan
Export-Import Bank of Thailand has extended a Bt324-million loan to Top Maritime Service Co, a subsidiary of Thai Oil.
The funds will be used to finance TMS’s purchase of three crew boats to service petrochemical companies in the Gulf of Thailand.
The loan was extended under the government’s Financial Assistance Scheme for Maritime Business. The contract was signed yesterday. – The Nation
SSI trumpets high output
Sahaviriya Steel Industries (SSI) successfully achieved 26 million tonnes of accumulated hot-rolled-coil production on Monday, the highest among all steel companies in Thailand.
Win Viriyaprapaikit, CEO and president of the group, revealed that SSI’s Bang Saphan plant in Prachuap Khiri Khan province produced hot-rolled steel sheet in coils to an accumulated 26 million tonnes, underlining its market leadership position in Thailand.
– The Nation
