TheGhostWithin

Why doesn't the government make it easy for everyone and add the name Shinawatra to the other prohibitions under the Lese Majesty law ?

Agreed in practice, but in principle the law is established for those who deserve the rights of protection by the state. Leste Mageste legislation protects (in particular) a person who has contributed most of his life to a country and has asked for little in return. What he has is subject to private discussions. But what he has given is much more than the current, or the previous administration.

My personal opinion is that it is time laws were introduced to ensure those holding portfolios have qualifications and experience relevant to contribute to the area in which they control. There needs to be levels of accountability for wrongdoings bought into place as well. It should not be the place of the PM to sue such people, but the judgement of the Thai Police to establish if such an article breaches any criminal laws. If it does not, would she not be better highlighting the post as an example of how some men would do better with the ladies by treating them a little nicer?

She has hardly earnt her place in the books of the Leste Majeste legislation, nor is it her place to sue the press in an attempt to muzzle free voice on politics. We all know her own red shirt supporters have done far worse, in the distant past, as well as in the very recent past. Get on with your job and start doing it with a little inspiration.

Didn't get past the opening few seconds, the fact that they were riding a motorbike without wearing helmets was enough for me to be suitably outraged.

Do you ask for hamburgers without meat too? That is effectively what you have done by stopping the video at the initial "bike riding" scene, haha..

Hi Rookball,

I have been quoted the following:

B1,500 (each tooth) - Samithevet Hospital

B3,000 - 15,000 (each) Bumnganrad Hospital

Neither include the consultation fee, or any post operative medicines.

The reason I raised this thread was the huge difference in pricing on these two quotes. I know Bumnganrad has a reputation for being in the high end of the pricing scale in Thailand, so wanted to know where I could get the same service as everwhere else, maybe a little cheaper if booking in advance than if I walked in off the street. I have time to plan, my workplace is allowing me to take the trip on medical leave with some annual leave afterwards to recover.

I took my 18 year old to the Dental Hospital in Bangkok. He had all 4 pulled at once. It took him about a week to recover. The price was reasonable. They did it under sedation, but I am not sure how deep. I would recommend that you have someone with you the first couple of days as they were pretty rough for him and he did need someone to look after him.

Pandita (Ms.), Patient Relations

Dental Hospital

88/88 Sukhumvit 49

Sukhumvit Road, Wattana

Bangkok 10110 Thailand

Tel. +66 2 260 5000/-15

Patient relations: +66 2 260 5029/-30

E-mail : [email protected]

Web Site : www.dentalhospitalbangkok.com

Hi there Pacificperson, are you able to tell me what your 18 year old paid? Were these impacted? The price is usually higher for impacted wisdom teeth to be removed due to the complication of the procedure. It is also considerably more painful and requires a longer recovery time.

I can speak Thai, so that is not an issue. I have friends who will be able to look after me as well, my girlfriend will not be with me though as we have both agreed she should remain in NZ and ensure the bills are paid (no, she won't be paying them all by herself! ), enjoying the place to herself. I do worry a little about recovering alone, but I know a lot of people and have a lot of good friends that could stick around and keep me company so not such a worry.

Hi all,

I am going to come to Thailand and combine my medical leave with some annual leave at the end, to hopefully get in a bit of a holiday after I have recovered.

I need to get my two upper wisdom teeth surgically extracted - both are impacted. I would like to be put to sleep during the procedure, but will not need accommodation post-op.

Has anyone dealt with any of the hospitals here and have any experiences they can share price or experience wise? I have had a few quotes but they seem a lot lower than I would expect even in Thailand, I wonder if they inflate the prices once they get you through the door so thought I would ask here..

Thanks all.

In the us I'm hardly getting 3.4% with stock dividends.I'd say that's A good deal if it's A secure bank.

And I assume that your stocks have had no capital growth either? Almost all stocks which provide a divided consider dividend only a component of total investment growth for an investor. Understanding that growth is only realised on the sale of the stock.

I missed a 2% or so gain in the past week, because I had my funds in cash. I have just switched my funds to stocks. Why? Global banks are again reaffirming they are not raising rates, with some speculation of even interest rate cuts for some (e.g. the atrocious bureaucratic mess which is the EU and the ECB). When interest rates are low, stocks rise. I will look to pull these out on high sentiment and prior to US and EU interest rate decisions as they flow out.

Wonder if they would loan me money for a bacon farm.

Or a bible factory.. or a church.. or an "I love bush" T shirt manufacturing firm..

Non Performing Loans at around 30% Normal if a bank have NPL's around 4%, it is considered high !

It seems like our sharia brothers are taking "sharing loss and profit" a little too litterally! When the news broke a couple of months ago, about the NPL's, people were queueing to take their money out! So prophets or not, stay away, not hal-al !

Yep, that bank also called the IBank is belly up and has been having runs on it by panicked customers. It has asked the government for a bailout.

Another Thai bank, SME, has asked the government for a bailout.

I wouldn't have a single baht in a Thai bank right now. Nor would I have in real estate or the stock market.

Link

What a load of crap! I guess, that even you have noticed the strength of the Thai baht, caused by strong cashinflows from proffesional investors abroad. But ofcourse you know something, that the rest of us mortals don't know?? Q1 result are just ready from all Thai banks, and with exception of the 2 mentioned, they are all doing extremely well .

As for the SET, last year + 36% and so far this year up more than 10%, with good dividends from most companies. Realestate are as we all know, location, location, location.

Yes it can all go south, the world is a dangerous place, but without a ticket, no lotterywin!

Time to turn in, it is late. And despite (or because of) being fully invested in Thailand, I sleep very well!

Goodnight

I liked your previous post.. but I have to ask, do you have access to market trade information which enables you to differentiate between professional trading institutions and standard low level buyers? The other thing to consider too is, big institutions have been wrong in Thailand too, 1997 was not that long ago. I would speculate that the cause of the rise of the baht has nothing to do with professional traders money, however being hot money from both money being chased out of previous safe havens and considering the issues currently being presented in Cyprus (a financial tax haven), Switzerland over the past few years, and shortly Austria, UK and Luxembourg.

You could say indirectly, Germany through its' vision of the Euro has caused the rise in the baht. The performance of the SET index has nothing to do with potential, nor results. When interest rates are low, people do not save. When people do not save, they generally spend what they have. When they spend, prices rice because demand rises. This would normally cause gold prices to rise. Gold has fallen for a reason which I do not fully understand. People are therefore gambling on markets such as the SET, HSI and NKI in an attempt to avoid European turmoil, recent weak economic numbers in the US with an anti-capitalist president presiding over the street, and China weakening. It is my belief that these are false hopes.

It is a gargantuan flood of money from the rest of the world parking itself in Thailand for the interest rates. But they darent cut rates to much because of inflation.

Most exports from Thailand are priced is USD.

It's not manipulation, it is the market reflecting Thailand's ability to pay relatively better interest rates, in a world of negative real interest rates. You can call it speculation, in essence it is just risk based business.

Just wait until the flood of yen hits Asia. God knows how high the thai stock market will go?

The value is just the sum of total demand versus total supply over a period of time. GDP grows, total domestic and foreign demand increases for a country's products and services grows, the value goes up.

Funnily, the Swiss have been furiously neutralising the strengthening of the Swiss franc as money flooded in there. Once the baht really gets too expensive, total demand for exports will drop, but Thailand exports are so much more than just rice. Just look at the car export numbers.

The cost of the product is so much more than just 300 minimum wage.

FDI still seems ok. I think the baht will bumble along between 28 and 30 to the usd for a while yet. There is no sign that any of the big economies are going to raise interest rates for a very long time.

The euro is going to come under more pressure, if it survives at all, and the Brits are apparently over the moon to have avoided a triple dip with 0.3% growth.

Where is the good news to suck the money out of Asia back to the west?

That would sound logical, but interest rates here are at 4.25% p.a - rates I could find in Thailand are around 3% p.a on a term deposit.

Considering risk, New Zealand would be considered a much more stable and less risky market than Thailand. So why has Thailand held up against higher yielding less risky markets in a risk-averse market environment?

It's not the Thais deliberately trying to create a strong baht, it's the USA, Europe and Japan desperately trying to inflate their way out of massive debt and get their economy moving by borrowing to finance spending.

There has never been a scale of borrowing like it. So what does anyone expect? The baht to weaken, lest we forget, the currency still isn't back to pre 1997 crisis levels. 45 to the USD was a legacy from Asia's crisis, it's value today is a reflection of the crisis in the developed world, along with relatively good growth in Thailand. If the currency gets to strong, demand will drop and the baht will devalue. The market will sort the value out for itself in the medium to long term.

And, value isn't tied to the niche you export, if the world wants widgets, relatively reliably and relatively cheaply and you make them, they demand your product. Simple.

Yes, and when a commodity produced by a country is exported, it is paid for typically in local currency (in this case baht). It is DEMANDED by the seller, who sells his currency (lets say NZD, my local currency) to get the baht to pay for the product. This is usually an invisible exchange handled by the bank (in Thailand or New Zealand). The baht is bought, the NZ Dollar is sold. This increases the value of the baht, and reduces the value of the NZ Dollar - making the local product more expensive to a foreigner looking to buy with a foreign currency.

Countries which produce niche products (products others do not or can not) can survive on a high currency, because importers are forced to pay whatever price the exporter sets. They profit hugely from this. An example being fine watch production in Switzerland, or Aircraft production in the UK. Rice exports from Thailand can be and are being replicated in many other countries, as are Thailands other main exports and also tourism.

The NZ Dollar has gained against the USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, SAR, CHF, JPY, KRW and others in the past year but gained only 60 satang against the baht.

I should also mention, we have had the strongest export season here for many years with some of the best GDP increases in the western world (I know, its' not much to brag about). So what has happened to make the Thai Baht so strong this year? The answer is not exports, not tourism, it is market manipulation.

Don't suppose it has occured to them that sooner or later the investors will want to sell these bonds and get there money back plus interest!

They are probably banking that by then, ASEAN will have kicked in and other members will lend with preferential lending rates, and under less stringent conditions. They could well be right. But how many friends does Thailand REALLY have in ASEAN? They have picked fights with half of them at least in the past 20 years or so.

Whilst Thailand is happy to see the baht grow stronger and stronger Australia is working overtime to try and bring the strong aisssie dollar down. Tourism, local manufacturing and exports are suffering. The car industry is in danger of going under and job loses are on the rise. It is putting a strain on the government purses. The strong dollar is good for aussies travelling abroad and expats but back home it is not so rosie.

what makes you think "Thailand is happy to see the Baht grow stronger and stronger?" did you conduct a poll or interviewed "Thailand"?

For every winner there is a loser, I haven't heard the weak currency rich country argument in the long term.

Countries with strong currencies are only stronger if they export advanced niche market products, such as Switzerland and previously the in UK.

Countries which thrive on low value currencies are "mass production" industrial countries such as Japan (less so over time, but still with regards to autos), China, Thailand and Malaysia. All of these countries bar one, who artificially controls heir currencies is suffering under a high exchange rate. The one which controls (China), is still suffering.

Certain powers seem to like a high baht, because it gives them more external purchasing power. The consequences of local exporters are relatively insignificant for these people, they do not care about the small man who will suffer when markets slow locally because of the high baht. I suspect other members of the leadership like a high baht because "it sounds nice" and must be a cool thing to brag about, not understanding the underlying fundamentals of a strong currency in an export driven economy such as Thailand.

Thai's love to eat, but they cant eat all that rice and canned fruit alone.

Thais love to party on Khao San Road, but they cant drink all that beer alone.

Lonely Thai mothers love their relaxing lives in the village with the daughter working in a "hotel" in Bangkok, but their lives will not be sustained when daughter sleeps alone.

Apple loves to dance every night, but she can't if John skips his trip this year because Thailand is too expensive. She can't afford the som tam anymore, it went up from 15 baht to 30 baht overnight. Barry goes to Cambodia in his time off the rig now, and the US Navy does not come to Phuket anymore because another destination offered them a better (and safer) deal on their R&R stops.

Its all a vicious cycle that has already started.

Apologies for the generalisations, but these generalisations fund a huge amount of the Thai economy.

-Baht dropped 3.3% vs GBP

Ok, so the Baht dropped 1% and it immediately appreciated 1/2% from that low. Now just because there was a "blip" in Forex trading does not mean a trend has started and this news will not help.

-Baht dropped 2.6% vs USD

-€UR the Baht dropped 1.6% vs €UR

friday market closing, appreciation not applicable

a "blip" in forex trading does not last 2½ trading days (Asia opening april 24, NY close april 26).

I'm sorry Naam, hate to pick on you, but a 2.5 day move does not necessarily constitute a long term trend reversal either - it could just be institutional investor(s) taking profits. The strengthening Baht is a very long term trend against almost all currencies, and is undeniable over a period of years.

I currently a currency trader, and have done well (though that's speculation without proof I guess ).

I will agree with all except the last paragraph. A successful business is clearly focussed and the same applies to stocks. Thin diversification is rarely a way of delivering substantial success as small holdings are held back by not only their size but trading costs and so it is an essentially defensive play (if that is what you want). Diversification also proved to be NBG even for that in 2008. It is the lazy man's way to invest (fine if you want to be lazy). Better to focus on a handful of stocks and have the time to follow their ups and downs and understand what is going on. No guarantee of success but offers potential and interesting for the challenge it presents.

From my experience, the best way to invest is to research. 90% of your time should be on researching holes, 5% should be on recording and monitoring when the holes you have identified eventuate, and 5% should be spent on identifying good investments in times that the market is falling.

Thailand is at market peaks, it is currently at a period of relative political and civic calm - though those of us who have been watching Thailand for long enough understand that the longer the calm, the more ferocious the response will be the next time something happens. It is in this period of time as markets go, that most investors are entering the market - these are the same investors who typically will end up losing. They are the mom and pop investors, the institutional investors have already entered the market, and will begin to exist as non-institutional money enters.

If you want to make money at the moment, look very hard - I cannot find anywhere to put my money, but as a Kiwi our investment options with local banks are very limited (they are very conservative). I would like to invest in Africa with an established bank in some sort of Africa fund, but they do not offer this option here. Do you know the worlds largest online payment system is not Paypal? It is called M-Pesa and operates in various African countries. It is more advanced than Paypal, and effectively runs as a surrogate bank and is already more advanced than PayPal. These are the types of products I would love to invest in, if I had a trusted source to access them.

Hi all,

I am at the moment making arrangements to get a Khaen (Lao musical instrument) which is very important to me and I doubt I will ever be able to get again. I have arranged for a friend already to pick the item up for me, however I need to get it shipped internationally so I am concerned that this will be damaged in the mail.

Does anyone know of a shop or can refer me to someone (Thai is OK too, I can speak Thai) that can make a box for a Khaen if I gave them the measurements? I would need this made by June. Of course I will pay, and quality of work is more important to me than money. It can be made from wood or anything else someone can suggest. Something like a flute box (but for my Khaen) would be great, an example here: http://millerwicksni.webs.com/Flute-in-Case.jpg

The other day I saw a few soi dogs meander into the territory of some other soi dogs. One of the encroaching soi dogs began barking and growling and suddenly three of the other soi dogs, whose terrotory was being encroached upon, beset him and tore him to pieces.

Is there any point to this story beyond casual observance of how low individuals can choose to be on the evolutionary scale of human development?

Sad to say it, but it is actually good to see that it is not only those with white faces causing problems in Pattaya.

And maybe the moral of the story is, 50% of employees from 7/11 are "ruffians" outside of work, and do not change uniforms when they finish work. We are just not sure which are the 50% that are "ruffians" and which 50% are "ladyboys".

...'However, he admitted that some military personnel still use them since there is no other alternative instrument.'...... I wonder how the families of the troops using this golf ball finder feel about this...... and if people are still being carted off for interrogation if this toy indicates that they have been handling explosives. Is the Thai Army not leaving itself open to international ridicule and possible lawsuits from the wrongly accused..... it's no suprise that some of the Thai muslims want an independant state !

Your last sentence concerns me. There is no state which "belongs" to the Muslim population of Thailand. I go to the south regularly, I sleep on Buddhist owned land. Where would my gracious hosts rest their heads each night if their land was handed to Muslims? The government has no right to do this, nor the interest. It is about face. Thai Muslims are no different than Muslims of any other country: some are good, some are bad. Some of the good support the bad when it comes to the war against "the infidels". Yes, that means you, as a non-muslim.

I would suggest you read thoroughly with regards to modern Islam and its' view of the western world. Visit the east coast of Malaysia while you are at it, and as a last stop, take a look over in Somalia and parts of Nigeria. Then feel free to come back and remind us that we are doing the muslim population of Thailand and the rest of the world a great wrong by attempting to protect those whom they wish to maim, murder and slaughter.

Does said policeman like to wear white gloves and blow whistles at traffic intersections ?

I know someone whose father is a Commissioned officer in the RTP. He wears a white suit for ceremonial purposes with white gloves, and lots of medals. For what I do not know. I also found this on facebook and asked who the guy with the upside down smile was

It's sad to think that in just a few more generations the two World Wars will be nothing but a few pages in the history books as those that were alive between those conflicts, or born as baby-boomers and Gen-X, age, and depart the world. I recall my Dad talking of his forebears that served in the Boer War and thinking that it didn't have much meaning to me at the time. I can see even in my own kids now (in their 20's) that they have no understanding of the huge sacrifices that their Grandparent's generation made in the 1940's. One more generation and perhaps ANZAC Day will just be a public holiday with very little remembrance of those that made the ultimate sacrifice.

Lest we Forget, lest we Forget.

We still get high turn outs in New Zealand for ANZAC services. A recent poll showed people felt ANZAC day was more important to us than Waitangi Day, our supposed national day.

My Grandfather was in the Military Police during Vietnam, a war which is not as freely remembered as WWI & WWII. Each day I walk past the memorial standing in the foyer of my workplace (NZ Rail) and make sure my poppy lies with them on the monument as they stood for me. I join ANZAC day celebrations in living memory of my Grandfather, a great man.

Sadly, I wonder how long it will be until we all have to march again. I wonder if the casualties would be even higher, considering modern weaponry, which is much more accurate and deadly than the weapons of the previous wars, which caused much higher and more atrocious injuries rather than a higher casualty rate.

As ANZAC's we lost a large proportion of an entire generation of men in our country for the freedom of everyone - a sacrifice made indiscriminate of race, gender, social standing or reputation. Our current global generation could learn a lot adhering to these same beliefs in so many facets of day to day life.

Thank you to the 8,141 Australian Soldiers and approx. 12,000 NZ Soldiers who sacrificed their lives in exchange for a legacy of chance and hope.

For most Expats - the problem is what has happened to the currency in their home country - not what has happened to the Thai Baht...

The NZ and Aussie dollars are among the highest performing currencies in the last 12 months (as is the Baht) - and the NZ and Aussie dollars have also lost ground against it. The company which transfers my baht has gone from 24.5 a few months ago to 23 in the past few days. Coincidentally, the NZ dollar has also hit near all time highs against the dollar at 0.87 cents. It isn't all about the weakness of the dollar, it is also about the strength of the baht. The export sector (and now tourism sector, which affects many other sectors such as the food and beverage and entertainment sectors) are beginning to show signs of weakness. The governments continued borrowing of foreign funds will further strengthen the Baht. This protects against external inflation generated by the devaluation of the dollar but makes buying anything from Thailand much more expensive than traditionally expected.

If the past is a good guide. I was in Thailand working in 1997. A beach condo ON THE BEACH was probably in the mid 30's in USD. Today price those condos! You could live well on less than 1K a month of US money. Calculate that now! In general I would plan on big inflation and eroding value of western currency. It is hard to get thai baht in thai banks as a falang. If you can manage it safely this will definitely help with the eroding value of western currencies. If you can purchase a condo now you will be far ahead of the game in 15 years. Property is always a good hedge against inflation. As far your life in the west squirrel away money but don't deprive yourself. We never know when we have eaten our last meal. I am 57 now and will pull the plug on my western life style in two years to enjoy some retirement time in Thailand. I wish I had bought the beach condo. I did squirrel away money. Should be fun.

You did read the article on the BOT (Bank of Thailand) concerned the other day about condos in Thailand being in a bubble, didn't you? You do realise that in Pattaya, about 66% of property values are in condominiums, and only 30% in housing, don't you? When holdings of condominium holding values surpass housing holding values in an area which is not an intentionally compacted metropolitan area such as New York, Singapore or Hong Kong, it may be precisely the time not to invest in such things. This is the Pattaya market.

Bangkok is like a ship with a hole in it, in which the crew can see it sinking, but the crew are too drunk to take a cork from one of their wine bottles and plug the hole.. this is exactly what is going on in Bangkok.. you really want to put your money there? Think carefully..

30% in cash (term deposits in AUD, CNY and GBP but change as required over time) spread over three or more non-related banks in three continents.

30% in real estate (ideally spread over a few different countries on different continents).

30% in shares (get the iBillionaire app for the iPhone and copy some strategy on there, or play the markets yourself but don't let some guy at the local bank branch or brokerage do it. The fact that they're still working for a living is a good indicator of why you shouldn't.

10% in bullion (long term as an emergency fund; gold is dodgy right now but long term it will likely hold up; buy small units such as pure gold coins - Maple Leafs , Kruger rands and the like you could use to pay with in crisis situations). Keep it in a safe or in a secret location (buried or embedded in a wall in the house that nobody knows apart from yourself and the little drawing in your last will).

Is what I would do...

I have to ask.. why invest in CNY term deposits? You do realise that China is Ruled by the Chinese Communist Party, and that assets within the territories of China can be withheld as it is considered theirs, right?

Also, I am curious on your recommendation of the iBillionaire app? On what grounds are you recommending this? This kind of name dropping without proof of long term success should really be backed up with data before trying to convince someone to invest serious money..

Well, the erosion of the western world is going to take many casualties. The people who diversify and use the Asian markets and opportunities are going to be ahead. I can't imagine how Europe or the US will be in 15 years, but i don't think it will be good. In 14 years i have seen the baht double in strength against the US dollar. Or is it the US dollar has weakened by 50%?

Joe,

There is a fundimental problem in your analysis (apart from no facts being presented, which is OK because it is a non-academic theory).

The issues I have is that yes, 14 years ago western countries were moving away from industrialisation and into commercial consumerism. Salaries of mostly non-urbanised populations were significantly lower than those in considerably more developed western economies.

Industrial production was of (mostly) advanced technoligies, or utilising advanced technoligies which gave them a competitive edge over BRICK nations. Countries such as Japan had humble beginnings, you may remember the term "Jap crap" when your children were playing with their toys if you had any.. I used to have toys which I referred to with the same inference. As time passed, Japanese companies vertically integrated and became more advanced, producing companies such as Sanyo and Sony.

We are now seeing virtical integration in China, with the west returning to a degree to industrialisation to fund their consumerism of the past 20+ years. If anything, the market is adjusting these asian currencies in a forced action by the US federal reserve, Japanese Central Bank, and others to "fair market value exchange rates" - some countries, such as China (and even arguably Thailand) artificially manipulate rates to ensure an uncompeitive advantage over western economies, enslaving the western world to a degree (those of us without millions in the bank).

I would strongly suggest to you that leaning on Asian economies in this period of "currency wars" is a highly risky move, the market agrees with me - China is one of the markets biggest losers worldwide this year, Thailand will turn as well once the governments story of "I can't kick the can anymore, its' too heavy" begins to show in the next 12-18 months.

I've been told the lime juice 'cooks' the meat....anyone???

Yes, but it only works in Isaan - it cooks with the Isaan sun (even in winter) with the Lemon, and is never raw when mixed with lemon juice, even when heat has not been applied to it.

Smile, love the food, love Isaan. I never ask what is in something.. if I like it I like it, the last thing I asked for and liked was Chickens @ss on a satay stick.. no kidding.

The strengthening of the baht is not primarily of Thailand's making. The US, Japan and other countries printing lots of money to stimulate their economies - call it quantitative easing or whatever - is a major factor behind this. Falling exchange rates also increase the export competitiveness of the big boys in what is effectively an exchange rate war.

Due to lack of financial scale Thailand and many other smaller economies - can do little to protect themselves and their own export industries in the face of this onslaught - until/if/when other countries' policies begin to change - the baht will remain strong.

I would believe this if it were not for other currencies which have been appreciating naturally due to market forces with confirmed trade data to back it up (growing trade surpluses in my country New Zealand for example) losing ground against a baht which is "magically" appreciating as well. The only reason the baht is appreciating is the same reason that the baht has always appreciated: intervention and manipulation of inbound and outbound money flows to and from Thailand. It is very easy to get money in, it is hard to get decent money out. It is designed to ensure everyone has a Benz to drive and Gucci to wear in the short term, but will ensure a relapse of the last crash in the long term. The results of the underlying economic activity which is currently taking place (Tourism being starved due to higher costs to visit the country, the government borrowing funds it cannot afford to repay, artificial manipulation of the cost of produce in the form of a price minimum) are very difficult to reverse quickly, let alone over the long term.

Thailand always brags about its' considerable foreign reserves, and about its' low debt to GDP ratio in comparison to "Farang" countries.. well, now it is time that you get to sit on your cushion until it is worn out.. then the pain starts.