30 billion baht loan to shore up falling rubber prices

[Thai at Heart]

The rubber is run by extremely rich Barons of the world.

I am not sure which country owns the rubber Thailand.

However when we Aussies were fighting communism in the Vietnam rubber plantations we were discouraged from using our weapons on automatic because they damaged too many rubber trees.

You can imagine how that went over.

We all saw the French wailing about damage to their trees after a mild contact.

The M-60 Machine gun would cut down kilometres of those trees.

The trees didn't belong to the Vietnamese but the French! And Australia apparently had to reimburse for these damaged trees.

Who owns the trees in Thailand? I doubt it the Thai people.

Why give so much money to foreign owners?

Thai Chinese companies with operations in Indonesia and sales and financing in Singapore.

They have no loyalty to Thailand.

Oh, Thai at Heart ! A bit more China bashing by you.

So the Chinese rig the system, they make sure that it's them who benefit. Everybody else only gets a little bit.

Thailand should try and do the same thing !

They are Thai Chinese not Chinese. They started in the south of Thailand, went into Malaysia and also into indinesia

They control the market.they are not losing one minute of sleep over the low prices, they are middle men. Go read about them Thai hua, Southland and the rest. They have govts in their pocket, as do the palm oil and rice companies.

Don't be nice about the influence and power of south east Asian chinese. These claim to be Thai companies and foreign companies are prevented from entering Thai markets without a joint venture.

They are monopolists and exploiters of the market and the Thai farmer must suffer. Who plans how much to produce. These companies do with the assistance of the govt.

"Rigged Capitalism", or is it called "Crony capitalism" ? At one time, some people called it "Asian values" !

Still, as long as the economies of South East Asia grow at above 5% per cent per year, everybody is happy. There won't be social breakdown or revolution, even though the benefits of plus 5% annual economic growth is mostly going into the pockets of the 'middle-class" and mega-rich. Well, it looks like it anyway !

Call it what u like, farmers aren't that stupid anymore. They know what is going on here. One day there will be a reckoning.

Inevitably. Absolutely inevitably.

[BSJ]

Someone mentioned the cost of tending rubber trees for 7 years before they are productive. Are the people with rubber plantations nuts! What sane businessman would invest in a project with no certainty of fair returns for 7 years.

A better investment would be Princess trees aka Royal Empress tree (Paulownia tree). The trees come from China and have a reputation as a fast growth tree. On the information I got when they were promoted back in Oz some years ago they would be an ideal tree for Thailand.

[hobz]

Why should ordinary hard-working taxpayers' money be used to bail out a failing business - be it a bank or a rubber plantation?

I guess it's because there's too many people that otherwise would fall into poverty, debt, starvation, forced prostitution etc etc.

Only ultra radical capitalist sociopaths wants to have a society like that...

I blame a poor education system and culture for producing massive amounts of people with an inability to fight back against their ultra rich elite oppressors that only give them small scraps from the table.

I blame a poor education system and culture for producing massive amounts of people with an inability to even recognize said oppressors and said situation.

I blame a poor education system and culture for producing massive amounts of people with an inability to plan ahead for the future and save money for when things gets bad and crops needs to change (etc).

I blame a poor education system and culture for producing massive amounts of people with an inability to see that they do deserve way more than they get.

Shit, I just got deep into my hatred for the global elite ruling class.. nothing thai-specific here..

[BestBitterPhuket]

If the depreciate the baht, prices at home will rise. The baht has strengthened somewhat over the last couple of months. It is not the best measure on the long term, but short term it will make income for all export commodities rise. Also Thailand will be cheaper for foreign investments. However, in the long run they need to move away from being over-dependent on commodities and diversify. They still have tourism, but it is volatile and they are not showing their customers (the tourists) enough respect as it is. Technology, they can forget. The terrible education system prevents any local technology invention and growth. Corruption kills a lot of the infrastructure. And the attitude to standard is very poor. And shortage of experts, due to a policy of only locals allowed. Look at all the expensive signboards with hideous English or all government campaigns translated into laughable English. To some this terrible English is funny but to many foreign investors it is a sign of a terrible attitude to standard and an acceptance of low standards.

[rickirs]

Gen. Prayuth had told the National Legislative Assembly this week that the proposed 2015 budget would not leave problems or debt for the country in the long run - as he would only be in power for one year: "I don't want to create a burden. There is no debt.”

Now the Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives is seeking approval from the NCPO for a 30 billion baht loan for agricultural institutions and business operators to buy rubber from the growers for conversion into rubber products? And he suggests a subsidy for rubber growers by 16,000 baht per rai to promote the replacement of rubber plants with other cash crops?

Not only are these rubber schemes to be debt financed and, thus, a burden on the new government, they are no better than the previous government rice pledge program in terms of transparency, accountability, and populism. NCPO should not allow such schemes if its vision of Thailand’s economic future is to remain true. To allow anything otherwise is to question its creditability in controlling the national welfare.

[stockmktgenius]

Five or so years ago, several people tried to turn me on to the amazing potential of raising rubber trees. I thought, "Wow! If everyone's doing it, I better run like hell! In 5 years when all these trees come online, the market's gonna crash!" And sure enough...

[billd766]

Sounds like the now-defunct rice scheme was just one of these crazy ideas. I never understand the thinking behind these....

Part of Suthep's (a southern) promise.

Really? I had not realised that Suthep was the power behind the military so how could he promise this?

[billd766]

Sounds like the now-defunct rice scheme was just one of these crazy ideas. I never understand the thinking behind these....

Part of Suthep's (a southern) promise.

A re-tooling of an old Suthep scandal. What is next? Palm oil "subsidy"?

The country has seen that movie before. Money will vanish mysteriously... TIT

Really? So chottee said it was a promise by Suthep and you believe him and continue the rumour. Show us all how and where Suthep is involved (if you can) and I will believe you.

[tullynagardy]

As I said from the start this whole debacle was never about fighting corruption, it was about changing the beneficiary of the corruption. Just a different side of the same sh1tty coin.

This is actually a replication of the rice scheme, but aimed at the South where the yellow/royalist/elite have their main fan base. This not only keeps their core supporters happy but ensures it is easy to skim off a few percent for themselves.

Ironically 90% of the pro coup supporters on here seems to live in Issan, the region which will suffer most as government spending shifts away to the South. More fool them when they have to bankroll an even longer list of family members.

[marcusd]

Well me buying latex rubber gloves here is still twice the price of Malaysia. Go figure

[marcusd]

As I said from the start this whole debacle was never about fighting corruption, it was about changing the beneficiary of the corruption. Just a different side of the same sh1tty coin.

This is actually a replication of the rice scheme, but aimed at the South where the yellow/royalist/elite have their main fan base. This not only keeps their core supporters happy but ensures it is easy to skim off a few percent for themselves.

Ironically 90% of the pro coup supporters on here seems to live in Issan, the region which will suffer most as government spending shifts away to the South. More fool them when they have to bankroll an even longer list of family members.

so please inform us of your great wisdom and logic and explain the BILLIONS paid to Issan rice farmers as opposed to the few measilly billions to the south? Your argument is bias only

[deepcell]

Capable? Why there is not a Thai company competing with Western Digital (foreign investment). Why there is not a single Thai car factory producing cars designed, built by Thais and with only Thai money? Ford, Toyota represent foreign investment.

If Thais are capable (as you assert) why don't they do it?

The equivalency you are trying to establish between agriculture and industry is not based on facts. Thailand is primordially an agricultural country which continues with their feudal traditional ways. Second, a cheap source of relatively inexpensive labor force for foreign investment (Western Digital, For, Toyota). Third a country that gets around 9 to 10 % GDP depending on the circumstances of the moment.

That is all what Thailand has demonstrated is capable of.

To be capable is such a blanket statement! Capable yes, but it is not.

what about Thai Rung? thairung.co.th/en/

[pisico]

Capable? Why there is not a Thai company competing with Western Digital (foreign investment). Why there is not a single Thai car factory producing cars designed, built by Thais and with only Thai money? Ford, Toyota represent foreign investment.

If Thais are capable (as you assert) why don't they do it?

The equivalency you are trying to establish between agriculture and industry is not based on facts. Thailand is primordially an agricultural country which continues with their feudal traditional ways. Second, a cheap source of relatively inexpensive labor force for foreign investment (Western Digital, For, Toyota). Third a country that gets around 9 to 10 % GDP depending on the circumstances of the moment.

That is all what Thailand has demonstrated is capable of.

To be capable is such a blanket statement! Capable yes, but it is not.

what about Thai Rung? thairung.co.th/en/

555 Thai style: he, he , he.

This is tongue in cheek; is it not?

No one can be seriously talk about a car that was made and tried to sell for 2 years in Thailand, disastrously, and finally the parts inventory had to be sold in kits to India, of all countries! Not even the engine was made in Thailand!

How many of those Thai Rungs, exponents of Thai technological prowess, we see on the rods nowadays?

It stands to reason that if Thai Rung had any quality to it in design and/or workmanship, it would still be made and sold nowadays; primarily to ethnocentric Thai citizens.

Thais know something that Farangs are yet to find out in this regard.

So the conclusion to your thesis is that Thais by themselves (without any foreign know-how) are capable of industrial failures such as Thai Rung.

Your intentions to defend Thailand are good, but you know the old saying about Heck and good intentions.

Better luck next time with your attempts to ignore facts of reality: "De Nile" is a river in Africa. Denial is not.

[tullynagardy]

so please inform us of your great wisdom and logic and explain the BILLIONS paid to Issan rice farmers as opposed to the few measilly billions to the south?

I`ve read that about 5 times and it still makes no sense whatsoever,

Both scenarios you mention billions are involved but you seem to think capitalising one, whilst writing "measly" before the other somehow changes the amount.

My TWENTY baht note is worth more than you measley 20 baht note

[Thai at Heart]

As I said from the start this whole debacle was never about fighting corruption, it was about changing the beneficiary of the corruption. Just a different side of the same sh1tty coin.

This is actually a replication of the rice scheme, but aimed at the South where the yellow/royalist/elite have their main fan base. This not only keeps their core supporters happy but ensures it is easy to skim off a few percent for themselves.

Ironically 90% of the pro coup supporters on here seems to live in Issan, the region which will suffer most as government spending shifts away to the South. More fool them when they have to bankroll an even longer list of family members.

Exactamundo

[wijar]

Five or so years ago, several people tried to turn me on to the amazing potential of raising rubber trees. I thought, "Wow! If everyone's doing it, I better run like hell! In 5 years when all these trees come online, the market's gonna crash!" And sure enough...

with your foresight you don't need to worry about anything. I am sure that you have made your millions in the stock market. Surprising that you haven't been picked up by the "motley fool's" yet!

[wprime]

Sounds like the now-defunct rice scheme was just one of these crazy ideas. I never understand the thinking behind these....

Here's how it works, when the reds are in charge, money is directed to rice and all the people in between.

When the yellows are in charge, money is directed to rubber and all the people in between.