Thailand to Cut Government Spending by 13% Next Year
Thailand plans to reduce government spending by 13 percent next year as anti-government riots and the global recession push the economy into a contraction in 2009, hurting state revenue.
The government aims to cut its expenditure by 251.7 billion baht ($7.1 billion) to 1.7 trillion in the year starting Oct. 1, Bantoon Supakvanij, director-general of the Bureau of the Budget, said today after a weekly Cabinet meeting. The spending plan will result in a budget deficit of 350 billion baht, he said.
“The economy is slowing more than expected,” he told reporters in Bangkok. The final budget plan must receive approval from the parliament.
Thailand’s economy may shrink between 4 percent and 5 percent this year, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said today faxless payday loan. Bangkok has been under emergency rule since April 12 after anti- government protests led to two deaths and injured 135 people, denting consumer spending and tourism revenue at a time when the global recession is crimping exports.
The budget is based on the assumption that the economy may “improve by one or two percentage points next year,” Bantoon said, without elaborating.
This year’s revenue may miss the target of 1.58 trillion baht by more than 10 percent, Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said last month.