The Thai cabinet has approved a plan to increase the 2025 budget deficit by 153 billion THB (3.6 billion USD), a move aimed at stimulating the economy which is lagging its peers in the region.
Bangkok (VNA) – The Thai cabinet has approved a plan to increase the2025 budget deficit by 153 billion THB (3.6 billion USD), a move aimed atstimulating the economy which is lagging its peers in the region.
Director of the Budget Bureau at the Ministry of Finance Chalermphol said therevision would bring the budget to over 3.7 trillion THB, up from 3.6 trillionTHB previously planned.
The budget gap will widen to 865.7 billion THB or 152.7 billion THB more thanpreviously targeted.
The 2025 fiscal year begins on October 2, 2024. However, the 2024 budget wasonly approved late last month, far behind schedule because of delays in formingthe government after the election in May last year.
The announcement of changes to the 2025 budget comes as the governmentcontinues to seek funding sources for its signature 500-billion-THB digitalwallet scheme, a one-time giveaway of 10,000 THB to 50 million Thai people agedfrom 16.
Chalermphol said the budget would be used to stimulate the economy but did notspecify if it would be used to fund the digital wallet programme.
Stimulus measures, including the digital wallet,are “extremely necessary” as the Thai economy is coming off a decade of averagesub-2% growth and faced other problems including uneven economic recovery post pandemicand high interest rates, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin stressed in an announcement last week.
The World Bank on April 1 cut its forecast for Thai GDPgrowth this year to 2.8%, from 3.2% earlier, citing a global trade slowdown anddelays in fiscal budget disbursement./.
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A corner of Bangkok (Photo: AP) 
