**What (Thai) investments would you recommend**

[side]

A question for you if you have invested some money in Thailand (stocks, bonds, ETFs etc). There's a sum of money I think I'll keep here in Thailand, it's a decent sum, capable of producing noticeable returns if invested appropriately.

 

I have a solid, well diversified portfolio sitting elsewhere, and I'm not inclined to send it there, and I am capable of listening to and doing due diligence on your suggestions.

 

Am interested to hear your suggestions re how you'd invest into various Thai investments that would produce a decent long term return. What has served you well so far? Obviously I could throw it at a selection of leading Thai companies but I'm keen on hearing from people who've worked some investments successfully here, ie gather some opinions first.

 

Thanks in advance for your opinions!

[Momofarang]

N.O.N.E

[side]

Just now, Momofarang said:

N.O.N.E

Assume you mean no investment is worthwhile over here. However if you had put money in PTT 5 years ago, you'd now be up by 33% and that's before including annual dividends into the growth, dividends currently stand in excess of 4.5%.

 

So, based on just one mundane Thai stock example alone, "none" is the wrong answer.

[gk10002000]

I would not put any significant money into Thailand.  Just not enough consumer or investor safeguards, and even less for foreigners as you will have little recourse to courts.  Having said that, there may be some opportunities related to Thailand.  First why not open an account with a credible broker such as Charles Schwab?  Thousands of investment choices from fixed income bonds, international bonds or ETFs, etc.  Given the strength of the Thai Baht, maybe some forex bets or investments against it might be worth a bit.  Nothing short term is going to change much, but it may be worth putting a percentage of your portfolio against the Baht.  Many ways to invest in currencies one way or another.  Ishares has a Thailand related ETF called THD.

 

Walking around Thailand this last August, I saw numerous condo developers offering guaranteed income if you buy and then they rent out your unit.  I am very skeptical of any such guarantee.  But the basic idea is you buy a unit, they rent it out.  Sounds nice.  And there may be enough chinese or other people coming in to rent long term, or they may be planning on using the condo as an air BNB, and house the large pre paid tour groups etc.  It might be a viable business.

[ThomasThBKK]

29 minutes ago, Momofarang said:

N.O.N.E

No capital gains taxes here...huge advantage over many other countries.

 

Even if thai stocks aren't really where i would put my money, the whole tax system is encouraging long term investments in stocks etc here, even if offshore.

[side]

6 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

I would not put any significant money into Thailand.  Just not enough consumer or investor safeguards, and even less for foreigners as you will have little recourse to courts.  Having said that, there may be some opportunities related to Thailand.  First why not open an account with a credible broker such as Charles Schwab?  Thousands of investment choices from fixed income bonds, international bonds or ETFs, etc.  Given the strength of the Thai Baht, maybe some forex bets or investments against it might be worth a bit.  Nothing short term is going to change much, but it may be worth putting a percentage of your portfolio against the Baht.  Many ways to invest in currencies one way or another.  Ishares has a Thailand related ETF called THD.

 

Walking around Thailand this last August, I saw numerous condo developers offering guaranteed income if you buy and then they rent out your unit.  I am very skeptical of any such guarantee.  But the basic idea is you buy a unit, they rent it out.  Sounds nice.  And there may be enough chinese or other people coming in to rent long term, or they may be planning on using the condo as an air BNB, and house the large pre paid tour groups etc.  It might be a viable business.

Thanks @gk10002000 will look into your points above.

 

The rental guaranteed return thing, have reviewed in the past and spoken with real estate pros and that's not really a great investment. The promised returns will somehow be baked into the purchase price and real estate capital returns are difficult to gauge from location to location, some could be promising, true, but many are substandard.

 

Land is more promising when going down the real estate route.

 

As you mention, betting against the THB longer term may be worth further thought

[side]

@ThomasThBKK @gk10002000

 

So if I'm intent anyway on socking away a sum into say Thailand based ETF's or a well-selected list of stocks and bonds or whatever, what would you be looking at? Indulge me ????

[Matzzon]

1 hour ago, side said:

Assume you mean no investment is worthwhile over here. However if you had put money in PTT 5 years ago, you'd now be up by 33% and that's before including annual dividends into the growth, dividends currently stand in excess of 4.5%.

 

So, based on just one mundane Thai stock example alone, "none" is the wrong answer.

Not saying that none is the right answer, but this is a time when it´s important to be very careful. That due to the instable economy in Thailand that just gives a false positive of growing stronger and stronger. 

As you post, 5 years ago would have been great, but not many people could forsee this rapid growth of the core economy. Today it´s a totally different ball game.

I have some things that I stillb elieve in, but I would never suggest that to somebody else. To big risks to play with somebody elses investments. As you state, you have a good portfolio in your home country, I suppose? I am then pretty sure that you quickly can grasp the situation here and therefore are going to serve yourself better with your own decisions.

[Number 6]

I'd think owning an apartment block would be a good investment depending on location.

 

Overall, I think Thailand poor investment. Especially buying condo units to let. I think this a horrible idea.

 

Restaurants as well.

 

Anything you do and compete with Thai labor but expecting it to generate income for a fat expat lifestyle. Bad idea.

 

I'll give you a guaranteed return of 8% if you buy it at my price too lol. Just a come-on.

[saengd]

28 minutes ago, side said:

@ThomasThBKK @gk10002000

 

So if I'm intent anyway on socking away a sum into say Thailand based ETF's or a well-selected list of stocks and bonds or whatever, what would you be looking at? Indulge me ????

You'd only sensibly invest in Thai stocks if you had Thai income, otherwise the exchange rate may bite you in the bum. The other point is that charges and fees here are much more expensive than offshore, a couple of percent can easily disappear before you made one satang. An ETF in Thailand will cost you a lot more here than the same ETF would cost you offshore, brokerage and intermediary fees account.

 

But assuming you work here and have Thai income in Baht, an LTF fund may serve you well since you get a good mix of blue chip stocks, plus you get a tax break - CG-LTF is my LTF of choice, purchased through UBAM or similar.

[side]

3 minutes ago, saengd said:

You'd only sensibly invest in Thai stocks if you had Thai income, otherwise the exchange rate may bite you in the bum. The other point is that charges and fees here are much more expensive than offshore, a couple of percent can easily disappear before you made one satang. An ETF in Thailand will cost you a lot more here than the same ETF would cost you offshore, brokerage and intermediary fees account.

 

But assuming you work here and have Thai income in Baht, an LTF fund may serve you well since you get a good mix of blue chip stocks, plus you get a tax break - CG-LTF is my LTF of choice, purchased through UBAM or similar.

You got my attention. Appreciate the post.

 

CG is corporate governance? is that the concept? Please expand

LTF is long term fund?

Tax break? What and why? 

 

Where can I read up on this in more detail? Clicked on some UOBAM link and it's not working ????

[saengd]

8 minutes ago, side said:

You got my attention. Appreciate the post.

 

CG is corporate governance? is that the concept? Please expand

LTF is long term fund?

Tax break? What and why? 

 

Where can I read up on this in more detail? Clicked on some UOBAM link and it's not working ????

Yes, Good Corporate Governance but it's from UOB Asset Management, UBAM for short https://www.uobam.co.th/th/home

 

The link below will show you performance over different time frames for the LTF products. Be aware, LTF's are about to be replaced at some point but it's not clear what with, that doesn't mean you shouldn't buy LTF's it just means there may be other options down the road. http://siamchart.com/fund-compare/LTF

 

Tax break is free of tax if held for seven years, contributions are tax deductible up to a max., they are designed for people who work here. That said I hold CG_LTF because I have significant Baht assets in country although I don't use the tax break, the holding does however fill a gap in my global investments.

 

EDIT - another UBAM link for LTF's https://www.uobam.co.th/en/mutual-fund/00052/UOBLTF

[side]

11 minutes ago, saengd said:

Yes, Good Corporate Governance but it's from UOB Asset Management, UBAM for short https://www.uobam.co.th/th/home

 

The link below will show you performance over different time frames for the LTF products. Be aware, LTF's are about to be replaced at some point but it's not clear what with, that doesn't mean you shouldn't buy LTF's it just means there may be other options down the road. http://siamchart.com/fund-compare/LTF

 

Tax break is free of tax if held for seven years, contributions are tax deductible up to a max., they are designed for people who work here. That said I hold CG_LTF because I have significant Baht assets in country although I don't use the tax break, the holding does however fill a gap in my global investments.

 

EDIT - another UBAM link for LTF's https://www.uobam.co.th/en/mutual-fund/00052/UOBLTF

Thank you, I'll be looking at this more closely ????

[saengd]

Don't overlook the exchange rate issue, I think it's key.

Also, don't underestimate brokerage costs, they are often ridiculously high.

 

Note: on the LTF comparison site....you can sort them based on the number of years by clicking on the years field.

[side]

1 minute ago, saengd said:

Don't overlook the exchange rate issue, I think it's key.

Also, don't underestimate brokerage costs, they are often ridiculously high.

 

Note: on the LTF comparison site....you can sort them based on the number of years by clicking on the years field.

Well I'm actually still unable to access the Thai site, strange that, wonder if it's because am currently outside Thailand.... Am back home in TH next weekend so maybe I'll more luck 

 

[saengd]

I will PM you a link.

[Airalee]

How about a US based Thailand ETF?  There is really only one option currently.

 

https://www.ishares.com/us/products/239688/ishares-msci-thailand-capped-etf

[saengd]

2 minutes ago, Airalee said:

How about a US based Thailand ETF?  There is really only one option currently.

 

https://www.ishares.com/us/products/239688/ishares-msci-thailand-capped-etf

Depends what currency he's using, exchange rates can be fickle creatures that could easily wipe out all your profit.

[side]

3 minutes ago, Airalee said:

How about a US based Thailand ETF?  There is really only one option currently.

 

https://www.ishares.com/us/products/239688/ishares-msci-thailand-capped-etf

Thanks but that's not my angle. I have some money here in Thailand and I feel I'd like to do something with it here.

 

This avoids all currency concerns as it's already in THB. And to reiterate my OP, I have a well diversified portfolio sitting elsewhere already. So this is to compliment that main portfolio and it will sit close to home here in Thailand.

[Airalee]

2 minutes ago, saengd said:

Depends what currency he's using, exchange rates can be fickle creatures that could easily wipe out all your profit.

That’s a risk I’d take before I would trust a Thai broker.   It can work in your favor also.

[Airalee]

8 minutes ago, side said:

Thanks but that's not my angle. I have some money here in Thailand and I feel I'd like to do something with it here.

 

This avoids all currency concerns as it's already in THB. And to reiterate my OP, I have a well diversified portfolio sitting elsewhere already. So this is to compliment that main portfolio and it will sit close to home here in Thailand.

Good luck.  Let us know what you come up with. 

[saengd]

39 minutes ago, Airalee said:

That’s a risk I’d take before I would trust a Thai broker.   It can work in your favor also.

Yes I agree that's a risk. But it can be mitigated by using the banks asset management company, UOB Asset Management and Kasikorn Asset Management both have very good reputations and are easy to deal with.

[Puchaiyank]

Use your hard earned investment money to purchase a one way ticket to a country that actually appreciates foreigners participation in the economy and rewards them accordingly.  ????

[1FinickyOne]

8 minutes ago, Puchaiyank said:

Use your hard earned investment money to purchase a one way ticket to a country that actually appreciates foreigners participation in the economy and rewards them accordingly.  ????

like the USA w/mexicans and other hispanics? 

 

This seemed to be an interesting thread - why turn it into a bash? 

[Puchaiyank]

1 hour ago, kenk24 said:

like the USA w/mexicans and other hispanics? 

 

This seemed to be an interesting thread - why turn it into a bash? 

Not ment to be a bash...just stating the obvious...

[sfokevin]

If I had the right connections I'd open a business selling health insurance to foreigners... 

[1FinickyOne]

23 minutes ago, Puchaiyank said:

just stating the obvious...

With all due respect... and I mean that sincerely as I think you might have served military and I respect that... and I know this has become cliched as well... but, what keeps you here? 

 

I have been in many countries, done many things in my life, and when someplace or something was not working, I moved on to something else... 

[1FinickyOne]

19 minutes ago, sfokevin said:

If I had the right connections I'd open a business selling health insurance to foreigners... 

I can't think of a worse business to be in... hospital bills are getting expensive and for a large % of elderly will be necessary at some point soon... 

[DaRoadrunner]

We live in an internet connected world. You may live in Thailand but why risk your investment in an unstable country like Thailand when you can invest anywhere in the world and manage it online here?

[Puchaiyank]

11 hours ago, kenk24 said:

With all due respect... and I mean that sincerely as I think you might have served military and I respect that... and I know this has become cliched as well... but, what keeps you here? 

 

I have been in many countries, done many things in my life, and when someplace or something was not working, I moved on to something else... 

Left Sat 1 week ago...40 degree nights, 70 degree days, some of the best Mexican food on the planet, liter of wonderful white zinfandel wine less than $3, sharpe cheddar cheese, college and pro football...Thanksgiving and holidays with the family...and No Frigging TM-30...????