Paetongtarn court ruling will not affect Thailand’s credit rating, says PDMO
The Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) has assured that the Constitutional Court’s upcoming ruling on Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra over an audio clip involving Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen will not affect Thailand’s credit rating.
Patchara Anuntasilpa, the PDMO’s director-general, said on Tuesday that regardless of the court’s decision on August 29, the verdict would not impact Thailand’s overall credit assessment.
He noted that Fitch Ratings is scheduled to conduct its next review in early November and is expected to maintain Thailand’s sovereign rating at the same level as last year.
Patchara added that after discussions with Fitch, the agency expressed no concerns about the political case itself—whether the court rules against the premier or whether Parliament might be dissolved.
Instead, the agency’s primary concern is the potential political fallout, particularly if it delays the enactment of the 2026 annual budget bill.
However, he emphasised that the political situation will not affect the 2026 budget, as the House of Representatives has already approved it.
“The 2026 budget has already been passed by Parliament, and we expect no delay in its implementation. It will take effect as scheduled on October 1 2025,” Patchara said.
As for fiscal space, Patchara observed that Thailand’s public debt situation is not a major factor in Fitch’s rating process, as the agency already has sufficient data to analyse and evaluate the country’s economic outlook.
