Economics

90% of plants affected by flood to resume output in Q4 (Thai minister)

Ninety percent of factories in industrial estates hit by devastating floods last year are expected to resume output in the fourth quarter of this year, said Pongsvas Svasti, Industry Minister.

Published

10 years ago

June 5, 2012

Akanksha Singh

Ninety percent of factories in industrial estates hit by devastating floods last year are expected to resume output in the fourth quarter of this year, said Pongsvas Svasti, Industry Minister.

The production sector has almost returned completely to normal with plants and factories in seven industrial estates in Pathum Thani and Ayutthaya exhibiting positive signs after the post-flood rehabilitation, the minister said.

Currently, about 75 percent of all factories, or about 626 from all 839 entrepreneurs, have resumed business. Meanwhile, 97 percent, or 7,669 plants out of all 7,893 plants located outside industrial estates, have resumed output.

The ministry will seek approval from the Cabinet on June 5 to support two-thirds of a 3.2 billion baht budget for construction of permanent flood prevention walls at industrial estates.

Meanwhile, Witoon Simachokedee, permanent secretary for industry remarked about assistance given to the industrial sector affected by floods that the measures have satisfied investors.

So far, import duties for the purchase of new machinery to replace ones damaged by floods have been exempted in 410 investment projects worth more than 94 billion baht. Visas and work permits were issued to 823 foreign officials of 218 companies to repair machinery. (MCOT online news)

via 90% of plants affected by flood to resume output in Q4.

Thailand’s initial losses in nationwide flooding were estimated at Bt60-90 billion or 0.6-0.9 per cent of Gross Domestic Product GDP, according to Finance Minister Teerachai Puwanartnaranubala. A loss of some Bt60 billion, or 0.6 per cent of GDP, was indicated by The Bank of Thailand, however the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board NESDB assessed the loss at Bt80-90 billion or up to 0.9 per cent of GDP.

Economics

Thailand’s Ministry of Finance expects 3.5 to 4.5% economic growth in 2022

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Published

23 hours ago

December 3, 2021

National News Bureau of Thailand

The Minister of Finance says Thailand’s economy this year would see only a 1.1-1.2% growth

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Ecommerce

Pakorn Peetathawatchai, President, The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET)

Published

5 days ago

November 29, 2021

Oxford Business Group

Pakorn Peetathawatchai, President, The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET)

What measures has SET taken to support listed companies’ compliance with ESG standards?
PAKORN PEETATHAWATCHAI:

PAKORN: When we first began promoting ESG-compliant investments, we were met with little interest. We attributed this to a lack of clear data to showcase the economic benefits of ESG investment, and perhaps limited clarity as to what constitutes a sustainable or ESG-compliant investment. The launch of the THSI list and, subsequently, the SETTHSI Index, was designed to address this. Our most recent data, comparing returns for the SETTHSI Index with the broader SET and SET100 indices from April 2020 to April 2021, underscores the economic benefits of these investments: the group compliant with ESG standards outperformed the other two indices on every data point.

As of May 2021 Thailand was home to CG and ESG assets under management totalling BT54.8bn ($1.7bn) across 50 funds – up from 23 funds in 2019. Meanwhile, of the BT187.1bn ($5.9bn) raised in green, social and sustainability bonds since 2018, BT136.4bn ($4.3bn) was raised in 2020 – 83% from the government and the remainder from development banks and private players. This rising demand, in a move to manage risk and generate returns, has been complemented by growing supply and promotion: supply from ESG-compliant businesses aiming for resiliency and sustainable growth, as well as promotion from regulators highlighting investment opportunities with good CG and SD practices. Indeed, the pandemic has been a catalyst in shifting the view of ESG compliance from a luxury to a requirement in the new normal.

In what ways can enhanced standard-setting and regulatory mechanisms overcome the remaining barriers to improved ESG performance?

PAKORN: A multi-stakeholder approach is crucial for enhanced ESG performance – not only in Thailand, but around much of the globe. This can also help to address the standout incumbent challenge: access to reliable, wide-ranging ESG data. For example, the 2020 update to the 56-1 One Report established clear ESG standards and triggered online and offline capacity-building programmes to support listed firms’ compliance. SET is developing an ESG data platform with a structured template to promote the availability of comparable data, maximise value added from corporate sustainability disclosures, and foster collaboration between the business value chain and stakeholders. This is expected to support Thai companies along their ESG journey in an economically sustainable way, result in a greater number of sustainability-focused products and services, drive sustainable investing in the Thai investment community and ultimately “make the capital market work for everyone”, as outlined in the SET’s vision.