Deputy Finance Minister Paopoom Rojanasakul claimed today he had no intention of looking down on retail stock traders in his interview yesterday, saying that it was not what he meant to say.
“I want to apologise if my interview caused any misunderstanding. I simply wanted to explain the Thai economic situation in the context of the stock market,” he said.
Yesterday, when a reporter asked him to comment on the criticism that the government’s economic stimulus measures have yet to boost the equity market, he responded, “Smart people will look at economic fundamentals and see this as an opportunity, but those who are not will be nervous and fail to recognise it.”
His statements sparked harsh criticism, with some saying that he, as a deputy finance minister, was not smart for making such a remark.
He insisted that the Thai economy has been on an upward trend since last year, with quarterly GDP growing steadily, and claimed that the government has prepared several economic stimulus packages that will help to improve the economic situation.
The decline in the equity market, he argued, does not reflect the economic fundamentals and is affected by external factors, including the trade war between major global powers.
