Distinguished Members of U.S. Industry and Finance,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a pleasure to be here at this event and to meet with leading members of industry and finance in the United States. Thank you for coming.
I am sure that many of you have followed events in Thailand over the past couple of years with great interest. I am pleased to say that one year after the election where I received a strong mandate from the people, we are enjoying continued political stability. This has been welcomed by the Thai people, businesses, and every foreign leader with whom I have met so far, including your President.
My government and the Thai people are committed to maintaining this political stability, through efforts of national reconciliation, strengthening rule of law, and promoting respect for human rights.
The political stability and Thailand’s strong economic fundamentals provide my government with a platform to implement pro-growth policies to stimulate the domestic economy. This included policies to enhance purchasing power of the grassroots, promote entrepreneurship, and strengthen SMEs.
As a result, not only have we achieved a V-shaped economic recovery from the floods last year but also our economy this year is expected to grow at 5.5 to 6 percent, even with the ongoing crisis in the Eurozone.
Thailand has long been rated above investment grade at BBB+ (Triple B Plus) as rated by S&P. However, if you look more closely, you can see that Thailand outperforms our peers with same ratings in many key areas. For example, for external stability, we have large international reserves of 180 billion U.S. dollars which is about three times the short term external debt. Public debt to GDP is around 40 percent, well below our ceiling of 60 percent.
This means that the government can finance fiscal stimulus programs in times of need. In addition, we have moderate inflation at around three percent and unemployment of less than one percent.
The Thai financial system and capital markets are now much more balanced in comparison to 10 years ago. The Stock Exchange of Thailand Index (SET) continues to perform well, in particular over the past three years where it increased around 65 percent, making it the fastest growing index in the world. On the other hand, the bond market has grown significantly since the 1997 crisis, providing you with a reliable investment alternative.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Our outstanding fiscal position has given my Government the confidence to pursue infrastructure and water resource management projects with total value of around 90 billion U.S. dollars.
For water management, short term flood protection is already in place to protect business, economic and industrial zones this year. For the long term, we are currently in the transparent international bidding for new water resource management projects, which is expected to begin implementation by mid next year.
For major infrastructure projects, we plan to enhance Thailand’s competitiveness by reducing logistic costs and improving regional connectivity. Some of the key projects include the high speed rail and comprehensive mass transit network in Bangkok and surrounding areas. Theses rail projects will generate streams of economic activities through construction of multi-purpose railway stations, development along the railway lines and into other areas of Thailand. Some rail projects will also be linked up to our neighbours and to China.
Given the importance of American investors, we have brought a full team with us today starting with Mr. Kittirat Na Ranong, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and top management from the Ministry of Finance and the National Economic and Social Development Board. They are here to answer any questions that you may have.
So I wish all of you a productive session and look forward to welcoming you to Thailand.
Thank you very much for your attention.
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