PM urges Thais to start saving and to make saving a Thai culture

[Ks45672]

this man is a complete baffoon, guess when you have 500 Billion baht saving is not a problem, i remember when he was a hired killer (Army) and he banned one of thailand most famous meal Krapow Moo because HE didnt like the smell

Not many buffoons have huge savings, but are you sure that he has savings of 500 BILLION. After a while, it all becomes just a load of zeros. Million, billion, trillion, zillion...........

I suggest he's closer to B600 million.

I heard he had a "personal disclosed " savings (not including the family, maids servants bank accounts) of 700 million so he obviously knows how to save better than most Thais...

And he also warned journalists NOT to investigate into his finances.... Says it all really

[louse1953]

"Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha urges Thai people to start saving and to make savings a Thai culture."

A bit out of touch with the commoners whose choice would be to spend their earnings on food and shelter or starve and save that money. Not everyone has the ability or opportunity to be the part of Thai Culture that shakes down motorists and business owners for enough money to save. Of course, I doubt they would give up that other part of Thai Culture which takes up a big chunk of their income...the Mia Noi.

Food and shelter? What I have seen is booze and gaming upon receiving their pay, both parents...

Rubbish.Don't know where you live,but in my village and the surrounding villages none of that goes on,Sure,a few pissheads on lao khao,but there are more drunks in the local farang bars.

[b4n9]

Thais only live for the day and moment.

after all that's what Buddhism suggests, right?

[aripengu]

Meanwhile interest rate given at BKK Bank for long term deposit has gone down year by year a few years ago it was over 3%, last year 2.8% and this year 1.8%, asking the bank why they don't give higher interest rate, the answer is government doesn't allow us.

Edited November 1, 2015 by aripengu

[Vandadavid]

Buddy all that Thainess stuff is not paying the bills

Foriegners have been made to feel not welcome with the Thai immigartion check out type people with a attitude that slams a passport on the desk and stamps your passport and miss pages in the process.................... You need white man that what Thailnd is based on and feeds off... You grand idea of a new world and closing Thailand is outrageous and the Thais a re not happy about the loss of trade with falang

Good Luck

[Enoon]

Thais only live for the day and moment.

after all that's what Buddhism suggests, right?

Both for the moment and eternity.

[micmichd]

Thais only live for the day and moment.

You don't have choices if you're poor.

[samjaidee]

Meanwhile interest rate given at BKK Bank for long term deposit has gone down year by year a few years ago it was over 3%, last year 2.8% and this year 1.8%, asking the bank why they don't give higher interest rate, the answer is government doesn't allow us.

That's equally true in any country. The Treasury determines a country's interest rates. Check the interest rates in some Western countries. A lot lower than 1.8%.

[callaway]

The girls in Pattaya and Phuket waste money on trinkets. Maybe they need to start to save or find more of you rich farang to fleece. Beware of these places if you have more than a thousand baht in your pocket. The girls are in on this saving mode

[Enoon]

"Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha urges Thai people to start saving and to make savings a Thai culture."

A bit out of touch with the commoners whose choice would be to spend their earnings on food and shelter or starve and save that money. Not everyone has the ability or opportunity to be the part of Thai Culture that shakes down motorists and business owners for enough money to save. Of course, I doubt they would give up that other part of Thai Culture which takes up a big chunk of their income...the Mia Noi.

Food and shelter? What I have seen is booze and gaming upon receiving their pay, both parents...

Rubbish.Don't know where you live,but in my village and the surrounding villages none of that goes on,Sure,a few pissheads on lao khao,but there are more drunks in the local farang bars.

The foreign, self appointed honorary hi-sos, who live in Bangkok, do tend to say such things.

It's one of their mantras.

[waldroj]

Thais only live for the day and moment.

Aah, the classic phrase by James Bond in The Man With The Golden Gun (while at the old Siam Intercontinental).

"per ora e per il momento che verra"!

[konying]

Personally i admire his intentions, what he is failing to understand that change has to start from the start.

How can Thai start saving when its such a materialistic society?

Everything is about showing off, what you have and how much of it.

A lot of local i have met, never ever had a bank account, in rural areas they donot even know how to use an ATM.

Many of them do not know how to use post office.

Must go back to the start, ie education, values and morals.

Retraining an old dog is almost impossible as he is set in his ways

[elgordo38]

Most of the Thais live on credit and have not got the money to save. this guy lives in a differenht world

Saving for what? I am in my 70's and listened to all that saving for retirement crap over the years and being young and naive I did it. Now the government with all their zero interest rate policies want to pay me nothing on my savings. Shafted again and again by government bureaucracy. Its all a hoax. Next minute they tell you to spend and borrow to spend to keep the economy afloat. Political turds the lot of them.

[Ombra]

Given how hard life is for so many people, I am surprised to read that 59% actually have savings at all and that as many as 44% are capable, to some degree or other, of saving for their old age. It is sad, though, to learn that an unusually rich politician is telling the poor to save.

[riki]

They have to do something because the debt is so large, last time they had to devalue the baht.so then the rich are not so rich

[coulson]

Penny wise and pound foolish....

28% defaulting on their loans and they're now urged to believe that having a piggy bank will make the future brighter?

[rebelplatoon]

Sorry to say, but another hollow remark. Maybe because it was hollowween ? The country has come to a staggering halt. People in public offices don't want to take decisions, at the risk of repercussions, so they don't. Sad to say, I see great ideas coming from the top, but no one ACTS. Meanwhile the Thai Baht is, once again, too high to stimulate exports. The people need decision makers. They need to start making proper money, in order to be able to save.

[tbthailand]

yes general and self-appointed "PM", we will all follow your example and through thriftiness save our way to become millionaires on our modest Thai salaries...

I don't like people who are "preaching" like this Herr Goh-Hok... especially when they do not have an actual solution which makes sure that people have pensions in their old age, or universal coverage when they are sick, or free education, or, .... almost anything else that benefits the broader society and not only the wealthiest elites and their military muscle...

[bkk75]

Thais only live for the day and moment.

Let's see how much you can save on avg Thai salary. I suppose if you had saved enough you wouldn't be here stretching your pension dollars.

Edited November 1, 2015 by bkk75

[Mickmick]

He could give every Thai person 1 million baht ( from his personal fortune )

and still have over 500 million left........ would everyone be "happy" then ?

And I would suggest you are either way off in your estimate of the Thai population or as financially illiterate as many Thais...

He is worth around 600 million.

Population of Thailand is approx 68 million.

600,000,000/68,000,000 = 8.82 baht each.

I am sure everybody will be very happy on less than 9 baht!

[thhMan]

It would help a lot of the people where educated to the point that they can figure it out for themselves.

But hey.... The life on the soapies looks good and it seems nobody has a job on those programs.... just wealthy, ignorant and arrogant

[schietkop]

The funny thing is, people are urged to safe in a government funds, of which in turn the same government promoting saving will borrow?

Edited November 1, 2015 by schietkop

[Mickmick]

I think many people here are missing the point of the PMs message. He wants people to join the new national savings fund, where the govt contributes into people's accounts too. Maybe all the TV members here saying the govt should do more don't know about this. I know my gf did not really know anything about it. The govt pays in from 50% to 100% of people's own contributions, depending on their age.

So if people bought an average Samsung/Nokia phone instead of "having" to get a new iPhone every time they could save 15000 baht plus another 50-100% from the govt. That would add up over the years, but no Thai that I know can think that far ahead financially . The other day one person asked my how I retired early, she is middle class and fairly well educated, but she could not grasp the concept of me putting extra money into my superannuation so that I could finish work early.

A bit of financial planning education in high school would not go astray.

Edited November 1, 2015 by Mickmick

[Jim walker]

Thais are good saver many Thais put billions of Baht's into off shore bank accounts every year.

[bobmac10]

A very good example of how out of touch the PM is with the rural poor

I fear the longer he remains in power the more he will invite the emnity of the prople

[bangon04]

I am slightly confused. I was under the impression that he wanted poor Thais to believe that the grand cornerstone of Thai Culture is subsistence farming the Sufficiency Economy.

It seemed to be working well - "Citing the findings, he said that 41 percent of Thais do not have savings; 56 percent are incapable of saving for use in their old ages while 52 percent of the aging people admit they cannot depend on themselves."

Surely the creation of wealth, usury and the accumulation of family assets to pass down to the next generation is a Chinese Culture??

[bkkgooner]

Of course the PM has never had to save a single baht in his life after daddy left him a piece of land worth 600 million when he was a kid

On a more serious note this is actually something that needs to be sorted out in Thailand even the middle class waste half their salaries in malls every weekend

[MESmith]

Perhaps, instead of carrying the latest iphone or whatever, folk could pin their bank statements to their shirts as a means of showing their wealth?

[GAZZPA]

"Citing the findings, he said that 41 percent of Thais do not have savings; 56 percent are incapable of saving for use in their old ages while 52 percent of the aging people admit they cannot depend on themselves."

Is it me or are those statistics all over the place. its almost as if they are written by someone who does not understand %ages,,,

So, 41% dont save, 56% are not capable (erm, so does that mean that only 3% of people DO save out of the capable 44%?). That seems un believable to me, and what constitutes savings? Someone who has money left each month or has a specific savings account?

I quite like the fact that the PM is making this statement but it does not fit too well with his statement of not relying on exports and growing domestic consumption.

so the message is get the shops and spend, spend, spend and the country will be out of its current hole, but dont forget to save, save, save at the same time.

[MESmith]

"Citing the findings, he said that 41 percent of Thais do not have savings; 56 percent are incapable of saving for use in their old ages while 52 percent of the aging people admit they cannot depend on themselves."

Is it me or are those statistics all over the place. its almost as if they are written by someone who does not understand %ages,,,

So, 41% dont save, 56% are not capable (erm, so does that mean that only 3% of people DO save out of the capable 44%?). That seems un believable to me, and what constitutes savings? Someone who has money left each month or has a specific savings account?

I quite like the fact that the PM is making this statement but it does not fit too well with his statement of not relying on exports and growing domestic consumption.

so the message is get the shops and spend, spend, spend and the country will be out of its current hole, but dont forget to save, save, save at the same time.

You need a "statistics & percentages for dummies" guide MEthinks