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Push for disbursement of investment budgets
The Comptroller-General’s Department has formed a committee to accelerate disbursement of investment budgets for over Bt1 billion worth of projects from 35 units after expenditures reached 20.4 per cent, or Bt525 billion, of the total budget in the first two months of fiscal 2015.
“It’s low. However, it’s still above 18.9 per cent at the same time last year but lower than 23.4 per cent at the same time in fiscal 2013,” a Finance Ministry source said yesterday.
Comptroller-General Manas Jamveha said a report on the investment projects, particularly those from the Transport and Education ministries, given the establishment of the committee, is expected to be forwarded to the Budget Bureau by December 25.
GSB adjusts lending programmes
The Government Savings Bank has set up two working committees to adjust its lending programmes to cope with the Civil and Commercial Code regarding guarantees, which will take effect next month.
The ban also plans to raise the level of collateral and the use of services from the Thai Credit Guarantee Corporation, while also focusing more on retail loans and micro SME loans, acting president Tachaphol Kanjanakul said yesterday.
Thai Airways International (THAI) has submitted a request for a Bt7 billion loan without the Finance Ministry’s guarantee, he said.
However, the bank is waiting for the results of THAI’s discussion with the ministry on the loan guarantee. THAI claimed that the Finance Ministry’s said the loan guarantee was not its business.
Banks succeed in ‘bond switching’
Bangkok Bank, Kasikornbank and Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) have successfully helped the government conduct a Bt76 billion “bond switching” liability management exercise.
Through this transaction, the government has effectively switched its outstanding baht-denominated source bonds due in May into multiple baht-denominated destination issues.
These include bullet bonds due in 2017, 2019 and 2021, and amortising bonds due in 2037.
This exercise helped the government achieve its twin objectives of refinancing near maturing bonds and enhancing the liquidity of the destination bonds.
Order books closed at Bt80.7 billion, with over 50 accounts. Investor appetite was strong, comprising 95-per-cent domestic investors and 5-per-cent foreign investors.
Financial institutions accounted for 63 per cent of demand, long-term investors 32 per cent and non-resident investors 5 per cent, Kritsda Udyanin, director-general of the Public Debt Management Office, said yesterday.
