Central bank admits crackdown on zero-dollar package tours has greater impacts than earlier projected

[webfact]

Central bank admits crackdown on zero-dollar package tours has greater impacts than earlier projected

 

 

BANGKOK: -- The government’s crackdown on zero-dollar package tours from China may have greater impacts on tourism business than earlier projected but whether the impacts will affect the GDP or not is yet to be assessed together with the overall economic performance, said Mr Don Nakornthap, senior director of Macro-economic Policy Office of the Bank of Thailand, on Wednesday.

 

Tourism sector accounts for 11-12 percent of the GDP and the number of tourist arrivals for the month of October has dropped to 2.26 million compared to 2.41 million in September representing 10.1 percent drop, said Mr Don, adding that this has weakened the consumption of tourism-related private sector.

 

Coupled with the weak purchasing power of the farming sector due to lower prices of farm products, the consumption growth of the private sector for the month of October contracted 1.9 percent against the figure in September.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/central-bank-admits-crackdown-on-zero-dollar-package-tours-has-greater-impacts-than-earlier-projected/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2016-12-01

[damo]

You can't always have your cake and eat it too. 

[berybert]

One thing you can guarantee is that despite tourist numbers being down and money spent being down, the end of year figures will show tourist numbers up and money spent up.

The numbers never lie in Thai.

[davehowden]

Foot, gun, shoot.

[NongKhaiKid]

Just now, davehowden said:

Foot, gun, shoot.

Yes, another carefully thought through plan with all possible eventualities considered.

[ezzra]

 

So dose than mean that without monkey business in the tourism industry and

engaging in shonky tactics to bring in and profit from million of tourists

Thai tourism can survive?....

[yellowboat]

2 hours ago, davehowden said:

Foot, gun, shoot.

That is what the inbred elite do in Thailand.  They ruin the economy and the populous suffers.  The people "guilty" of this were in fact Thai citizens.   They went right to the source, China.   They kept the profits out of Thailand, which is what most Thai businessmen do to take advantage of lower taxes in other places, notably Singapore or Hong Kong.  This is just a stark example.  They kill good business everyday, or they try. 

 

Oh please, you can do better than that :

Spoiler

 

 

Edited December 1, 2016 by Crossy
Rather gory photo hidden behind a spoiler

[worgeordie]

TAT still in denial  at the moment,expect them to release report

tourism is rocketing to highest levels ever.the Teflon is now wearing 

a bit thin,i think.

regards Worgeordie

[hansnl]

1 hour ago, davehowden said:

Foot, gun, shoot.

Feet, gun, one shot, two hits.

[digibum]

Here's a great example of why Thailand's economic (and other) numbers make no sense.  Tourism is currently (or it was the last time I saw the numbers) making up about 20% of GDP due to the decline in exports.  Yet here it's quoted as 11 - 12% which it normally is when exports are doing well.  Journalists, politicians, government officials throw numbers around, current, old, or just made up such that you can't read more than two or three different stories and get wildly different numbers.  

 

And yes, this was totally predictable.  I mean, sometimes it's beyond predictable.  It's the most likely outcome and yet they still don't see it coming.  

 

Reminds me of my (Thai) wife. :-)  

 

Me:  Honey, that's not going to fit in that box.  Put it in the big box.  

 

Her:  I can make it fit.  

 

Me:  No you can't.  I've tried it.  It's too big.  

 

20 minutes later

 

Her:  I put it in the big box.  I told you it wouldn't fit in the small box.  

 

Me:  What?!?!  You told me . . . Never mind.  Good job.  

 

The secret to a happy marriage.  Just let it go.  Just let it go.  

 

Same holds true for Thailand.  Don't even bother trying to make sense of it.  It's nor worth the hassle.  

[kingalfred]

Economy tanking since the incompetent Junta and its economic illeterates showed up. "All it has is the power of brutal force, nothing else "


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[eddie61]

13 minutes ago, hansnl said:

Feet, gun, one shot, two hits.

unless they were aiming for their foot......

[klauskunkel]

The Central Bank commenting on Zero-Dollar-Tours..., wasn't this shortfall reconciled with the increase of admission prices at National Parks for foreigners?

I can't wait to see the Central Banks analysis of the Lottery ticket pricing adjustment (another government initiative) and how it affects the Foreign Trade Balance.

[hawker9000]

[madmitch]

So what's happened to all the independent Chinese tourists that would replace the package tourists? Not to forget the visa free ones from Bhutan, San Marino and the like.

 

One positive from this article: a Government department has actually admitted they may have screwed up!

Edited December 1, 2016 by madmitch

[steveyinasia]

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

[williamgeorgeallen]

2 hours ago, davehowden said:

Foot, gun, shoot.

i was thinking nose, chainsaw, face. what were they thinking was going to happen?

[DrPhibes]

For those keen on economic stats:

 

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/indicators

[williamgeorgeallen]

24 minutes ago, kingalfred said:

Economy tanking since the incompetent Junta and its economic illeterates showed up. "All it has is the power of brutal force, nothing else "


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

yes but the army are making a great show of  demolishing a lot of buildings and moving street vendor food carts.  

 

[geriatrickid]

It's good to be wealthy.

[debate101]

We have a cadre of ultra-conservative airheads running my local outfit as well. The problem is not so much what they don't know--it's that they have no idea how much they don't know and couldn't care less, because they hold all the levers of power. Unfortunately, the rest of us are being dragged along for the ride. It's a microcosm of the system as a whole. I can imagine most public concerns are currently having the same experience. Remarkable, really.

[IamNoone88]

Keep it up. It will soon go from "zero-dollar package tours" to ...... "zero tourists", ok an exaggeration ......... but lets review the current very public challenges and connect them:

 

- Wallop the Chinese (yes they were fleecing the system)

- Violent crime against tourists and will remain high profile

- Taxi/tuk tuk mafia's continue with fixed pricing

- Airbnb type rentals being "banned"

- Beach clearances (but beach beds will be back in high season!)

- Jet ski operators continue unabated

- Tour boat operator accidents and sinking resulting in death (Chao Praya or at sea, makes no difference)

- Bomb attacks in Bangkok, Hua Hin and Phuket

- Rampant tour bus fatal accidents most weeks

 

I am sure there are more...... there should be a "taskforce" for each!

 

 

[MROLL320]

So how is the baht remaining strong?  Increased oil prices will mean a devaluation is out the question? 

[terminatorchiangmai]

we don't want them, no sorry we want them please come back.

[phantomfiddler]

Personally I long for the good old days when the streets were empty and the bars were full, the opposite of what is happening now. No point in having a place "look" busy unless there is a corresponding increase in spending.

[Anthony5]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

tourist arrivals for the month of October has dropped to 2.26 million compared to 2.41 million in September representing 10.1 percent drop,

 

And still they try to put lipstick on the pig. Whay they don't say have dropped from 2.6 million in October 2015, which is a drop of 20%?

 

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/tourist-arrivals

[Bantex]

42 minutes ago, steveyinasia said:

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

Is this the motto of Thailand?

[Pib]

And when looking at about webpage that Anthony5 gave when looking from 1998 to mid 2016 current tourist arrivals are still trending upward with the very typical sawtooth pattern...up a little, down a little....but over the long term still trending upward.  Short term variations are all part of the long term game.

 

[George Graham]

So they couldn't have been zero dollar tourists then.

[rodknock]

all part of the dog and pony show