Thailand's ease of doing business in 2018 up 20 ranks

BANGKOK, November 2 (TNA) - Thailand's ease of doing business position in 2018, ranked by the World Bank among 190 economies worldwide, has been up to the 26th place, from the 46th place in 2017 and the 49th place in 2016. Government Spokesman Lieutenant General Sansern Kaewkamnerd told journalists on November 1 that Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha is pleased with the new position of Thailand's ease of doing business in 2018, which is up 20 ranks from 2017 and up 23 ranks from 2016 and it is the third consecutive year that the country's ease of doing business has been on the rise. "The prime minister is very happy with Thailand's new rank in the ease of doing business index 2018, recently reported by the World Bank, as it is believed to further boost confidence in the Thai economy among global investors", the spokesman stated. The spokesman noted that Thailand's new 26th rank in the ease of doing business index 2018 is the third place in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), after Singapore and Malaysia, and it is only two ranks after Malaysia. Besides, Thailand's new rank in the ease of doing business index 2018 is among the top 10 global economies whose positions in the World Bank's index have been improved the most over the past one year, with the Thai economy's total score now slated at 77.44, from 72.53 last year. The spokesman attributed Thailand's much higher position in the ease of doing business index 2018 to, for instance, less time consuming in seeking official approvals of opening new firms by business operators and other necessary bureaucratic procedures, as well as more resort to e-services in the geographic information system, audit, fee payments and petitions. "The prime minister thanked all relevant parties for their good cooperation in adjusting their systems and working more closely with the private sector, apart from more facilitations and a cut in bureaucratic procedures offered by the government, which have contributed to the much better rank of Thailand's ease of doing business in 2018", said the spokesman. According to the spokesman, the Thai government plans to further upgrade its business facilitation systems, namely imposing fixed fee rates, cutting fees on e-corporate registrations and amending laws on business insurance systems, as well as expanding e-services and developing e-filling taxations. (TNA)