The Thai private sector is asking the government to extend the 50:50 co-payment economic stimulus scheme until the end of January and to continue the power and water rate cuts for another three months.
President of the Thai Chamber of Commerce Sanan Angubolkul, in his capacity as chairman of the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking, said yesterday that the co-payment scheme, which is due to expire at the end of December, and “Shop Dee Mee Kuen” (the More You Spend, the More You Get) scheme, have proven effective in stimulating consumer spending.
He also said that whenever the government plans to roll out new economic stimulus schemes, it should hold prior consultations with the private sector, because they know what the consumers really want.
Noting that the government still has 200 billion baht of a massive loan yet to be spent, and with the extension of the public debt ceiling to 70% of GDP, Sanan said that government can still afford to roll out more measures to boost the economy.
President of the Federation of Thai Industries Suphan Mongkolsuthree said that any scheme that will help reduce costs for consumers, be it utility rate cuts or the co-payment scheme, would be an ideal New Year gift for the Thai people.
