On Tuesday, the cabinet approved an executive order for a government loan of 700 billion baht. With the money, the government wants to restore the ailing economy and fund support programs to help individuals and entrepreneurs affected by the third wave of the pandemic.

Of the loan, 30 billion baht will be spent on the purchase of additional medical equipment, vaccines, research and the renovation of hospitals.

The loan brings the national debt to 9,38 trillion baht or 58,6 percent of GDP (gross domestic product), which is close to the 60 percent ceiling that is considered acceptable internationally.

Source: Bangkok Post

4 Responses to “Thai government borrows 700 billion baht”

  1. Karel says up

    Is that why the value of the baht is currently under such pressure.

    • Renee Martin says up

      That is one of the reasons why the Bath is under pressure, but the Thai population itself is also accumulating more and more debt individually. Also important are the export/import, oil price and unemployment figures.

      • It is not Bath but Baht.

  2. GJ Krol says up

    I don't think the government can escape this. The poverty trap is already very large and the number of suicides is also increasing as a result. In 2019, the national debt amounted to 42,2% of GDP. In my opinion, allowing the national debt to rise is the only way to deal with the crisis to some extent. Not even Prayut will want to go down in history as the president who not only did not care about the people, but was also responsible for the increase in suicides. To put that government debt into perspective, the Dutch government debt is expected to rise to 61% of GDP this year.


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