Political problems affect Thai economy

BANGKOK, March 27 (TNA) - Domestic political problems have affected the Thai economy, with the national economic growth forecast to stand at less than 3 per cent this year. Somchai Sujjapongse, Director-General of the Ministry of Finance's Fiscal Policy Office (FPO), told journalists on Thursday that his ministry has revised its estimation of the Thai economic growth rate downwards to 2.6 per cent this year, from 4 per cent projected earlier. Somchai pointed out that the Thai economy has shrunk in the first quarter of this year and it appears to continue contracting and if the new Thai government was formed by the third quarter of this year, the national economy would pick up in the fourth quarter. According to the FPO chief, his ministry has predicted that the value of Thai exports should, however, grow by 5 per cent this year as targeted by the Ministry of Commerce. The FPO chief noted that domestic political problems are the deciding factor of Thailand's economic problems, cautioning if the domestic political woes continued, credit-rating firms could start to review Thailand's credit rating from late this year to early next year, which would affect the country's fund-raising costs. The Ministry of Commerce reported, in the meantime, that 4,850 new companies were registered in Thailand in February 2014, a drop by 15 per cent year-on-year, and their combined registered capital amounted to 18.5 billion baht, a fall by 48 per cent year-on-year. Meanwhile, the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) resolved at a meeting on Thursday afternoon not to extend the period for Caretaker Prime Minister and Defence Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to defend herself for her alleged involvement in corruption under her government's rice-pledging scheme, earlier charged by the NACC. The anti-graft panel announced that Yingluck subsequently needs to submit her clarification, either in person or in document, to the NACC by March 31, 2014, if not, the NACC would regard that the caretaker prime minister has no objection to the charge and it would then proceed with further action. The March 31 deadline is a 15-day extension from the original 30-day deadline for Yingluck's defence, after the independent anti-graft commission charged her. (TNA)