Over Bt11b expected to be spent during Thailand's Loy Krathong Festival 2014

BANGKOK, October 30 (TNA) - As all parts of Thailand are actively preparing for this year's Loy Krathong Festival next month, Bangkok-based University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce's Center for Economic and Business Forecasting, has foreseen that about 11.13 billion baht should be changed hands during the yearly grand full moon festivity. The center's director, Thanawat Polvichai, told journalists of the estimated figure on Thursday, saying, however, that the projected money totally spent during the Loy Krathong Festival 2014 should be only a 2.37 per cent increase from last year's, its lowest increment in eight years. Based on the projection, Thanawat pointed out that this year's Loy Krathong revelers are expected to spend 1,678 baht each. According to the senior economist, a recent survey found that 77 per cent of respondents would celebrate the festival in their home province, as this year's Loy Krathong day is a weekday, and they remained concerned over the national economic situation. Meanwhile, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is preparing and inspecting venues for the upcoming Loy Krathong Festival, which falls on November 6, especially piers in the Chao Phraya River, to ensure their safe conditions for public safety. In Thailand's globally-renowned northern Chiang Mai Province, where this year's Loy Krathong Festival will be organized from November 1-7, decorative lamps are being installed to welcome up to, expectedly, more than 200,000 international visitors. (TNA)