Headlines summary as of 29 October 2021

News

Newly confirmed case(s)	Total Cases	Patients under severe conditions and those using ventilators	Discharged from hospital	From 1 April, totally confirmed cases (third wave)	1st dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	3rd dose vaccine recipients (from 16 July)
8,968 (190 from prisons); (excluding ATK 4,410)	1,893,941 (last seven days: 62,552)	2,222/ 515	1,775,570 (+8,747)	1,865,078	41,075,152 (+357,608) BKK: 8,379,645 (+14,577)	2,267,844 (+51,510) BKK: 639,395 (+7,096)
Local transmission	From abroad	Being hospitalised/ in field-hospital/ quarantined	Confirmed cases in Bangkok	Death toll	Total vaccination (doses)	2nd dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	Percentage of detection rate (past seven days)
8,752 [8,328 (get tested in hospital) + 424 (active case finding)]	26 (in SQ)	99,301 [53,620 in field hospital]	398,024 (+802)	19,070 (+64) (last seven days: 445)	73,692,039 (+879,556) BKK:  14,983,691 (+ 51,534)	29,469,487 (+353,836) BKK: 5,964,651 (+29,861)	13.74%

• The PM held a press conference after the CCSA meeting affirming the post-1 November plan to allow tourists from 46 countries arriving via plane can enter the Kingdom without quarantine. The quarantine remains in place for tourists arriving by land.
  • The PM said that so-far there have been around 40,000 tourists entering Phuket Sandbox.
  • The PM has called for the protestors to refrain from stirring any violence as the Kingdom is reopening.
• The CCSA meeting has made the following ease of restrictions:
  • The reduction of Dark Red Zone from 23 provinces to 7 provinces (Chantaburi, Tak, Nakhon Sri Thammarat, Naratiwat, Pattani, Yala and Songkhla).
  • Bangkok, Krabi, Pang Nga and Phuket will be designated as blue provinces (tourists-prototype) and alcoholic beverages can be served when dine-in from 1 November.—Khao Sod
    • Bangkok Communicable Disease Committee has to come up with a plan to allow the alcoholic beverages.
  • The CCSA spokesperson introduced the new ‘Test and Go’ scheme for tourists from the designated countries within the last 21 days. The tourists must wait for the negative RT-PCR tests in the alternative quarantine or in SHA+ standard hotels. The tourists will need to get the second ATK test on the 6^th or 7^th day or when expressing symptoms.—See attached
  • The guidelines are as followed:

Activities	Dark Red Zone	Red Zone	Orange Zone	Yellow Zone	Green and Blue Zone
Curfew	11.00 pm to 3.00 am	None
Work From Home	At least 70 %	For Greater Bangkok, at least 70%
Maximum numbers of people for gathering	50	200	500	1,000	As appropriate
Nurseries and aged cares	With permission from Communicable Disease Committee	Business as usual
Sport facilities or competitions	Open until 10.00 pm	Open until 10.00 pm	Business as usual – in-door sport no more than 50%	Business as usual – in-door sport no more than 75%	Business as usual
Theatres or cinemas	For air-con: 50% For outdoor: 75%	For air-con: 75% For outdoor: business as usual	Business as usual
Convention centre or meeting rooms	No more than 500 people	No more than 500 people	No more than 1,000 people	Business as usual
Department stores and community malls	No more than 10.00 pm	Game centres, theme parks and water parks not allowed	Outdoor theme parks and water parks allowed	Business as usual
Restaurants	No alcoholic beverages	No alcoholic beverages	No alcoholic beverages	Business as usual
Spas	No more than 10.00 pm	No more than 11.00 pm	No more than 12.00 am	Business as usual

• The pandemic situation in the northern province of Chiang Mai is in crisis as the province can no longer take in any red (critical condition) patient and the yellow (severe) patient is at 97 percent capacity.—Khao Sod
  • The Chiang Mai governor has signed an order to delay the return to on-site study due to the spike of the cases.—Khao Sod
  • The Deputy PM and Public Health Minister said that

Politics

• The Royal Gazette has issued its latest order to control the pandemic. The order still bars the protest and gathering of the people which would even jeopardise the pandemic situation.—Thai Rath
• It is a good-to-go for Captain Thammnat to remain as the Palang Pracharat Party’s secretary-general
  • After a failed attempt to oust the secretary-general out of position, the political juggernaut remains in the leadership position. The party leader affirmed after the party executive meeting yesterday that there will be no change in the party executive structure and that the main-ruling party can still work with the PM.—Krungthep Turakij
  • The party executives held a press conference showing solidarity and affirming that there has been no change in the party leadership structure.—Krungthep Turakij
  • Captain Thammanat posted on his FB expressing gratitude towards all his supporter.—Thai Rath
• The director of Amnesty International Thailand said that Amnesty has issued a letter of condolence on the pass away of a 15-year-old boy who has been coping with the severe condition from being shot with live bullet in front of Din Daeng Police Station. The statement has called for the authority to prosecute the perpetrator.—Amnesty International Thailand
  • Anti-government Free Youth Movement is calling for a gathering in front of the Din Daeng Police Station from 5.00pm to express their condolence.—Free Youth
• The United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration and other related anti-government groups are calling for a protest at the Bangkok CBD Ratchaprasong Intersection on Sunday from 4.00pm with the main message to call for the abolition of royal defamation law.–UFTD

Australia

• AFP factcheck pointed out that the photo of Russell Crowe holding donation envelop was a photoshopped photo of the Embassy Rabbit Card given to the Hollywood superstar.—AFP Fact Check

Economic:

• Commerce Minister Jurin said is he is ready to bring Thai delegates to participate in the WTO’s MC12 meeting from 30 November – 3 December in Geneva.  Commerce Ministry is consulting closely with its WTO Permanent Representative to make useful contributions to trade in the post-COVID19 era.  Source:  Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 29 October 2021
• The invitation to bring K-Pop sensation Lisa Manobah to the New Year countdown event in Phuket was rejected by her agency, accordint to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.  Instead, the government will organize events under the concept Reopen Thailand: Culture and Touirsm Festival in blue zonep prvoinces/pilot tourism areas to kick off Thailand’s reopening.  Source: 
• PM Prayut celebrates the news that foreign business confidence index (FBCI), which gauges foreign business sentiment in Thailand, had gone up to 41.7 in Q3 (from a scale of 100 points), up from 27.7 in Q2.  Foreign investors said they are feeling upbeat about Thailand’s prospects boosted by the government’s plan to reopen the country in November to inoculated foreign tourists and an increase in vaccine coverage.  Sources:  Siam RathBangkok Post
• Ministry of Finance (MoF) had downgraded Thailand’s GDP forecast for 2021 for the 4^th time to an average of 1 percent from its previous projection of 1.3 percent.  This is attributable to COVID-19 severely affecting the economy in Q3 of 2021, in which GDP is expected to contract by -3.5 percent but is set to rebound to +3 percent by Q4 as the country reopens in November.  Moreover, export is expected to expand by +16.3 percent this year.  In 2022, MoF expects the economy will see a 4 percent expansion.  Sources:  Bangkok Post   Thai Rath
• A survey by the Bank of Thailand revealed that Thais have better financial literacy at 71 percent compared to 66.2 percent in 2019.  However, a large number of Thais do not have enough savings to cope with an emergency situation for longer than 3 months, especially during COVID-19 outbreak.  Of the 11,901 households surveyed in Q4 of 2020, almost 39 percent had sufficient savings for 3 months for use during emergency when they lack a main income.  Over 60 percent do not have enough savings to sustain them for more than 3 months and only 17.8 percent have sufficient savings for retirement.  Sources: Naew Na Bangkok Post
• Airasia Super App aims to secure the largest share of 30 percent in Southeast Asia’s online travel agencies (OTAs) market in 5 years by maintaining double-digit growth from extensive online services.  The Super App’s expansion through air ticket booking service will help the firm reach this market as there are more than 700 international airlines that feature over 3,000 destinations in its app through many gateways, of which 25 airlines have direct partnerships with the app.  Source:  Bangkok Post
• At a special seminar on Circular Economy organised by Krungthep Turakij newspaper, the Higher Education, Science and R&D Minister Anek reiterated the importance of circular economy on propelling the success of BCG (bio-circular-green) economic model which can contribute to Thailand’s GDP by 1 trillion Baht in 2027.  The Thai government has announced BCG as a national agenda for 2021 and identified it as a pivotal element in post-COVID19 recovery as well as enabling Thailand to become a developed nation by year 2037.  It is also as an important agenda for its APEC Chairmanship in 2022.  State-run PTT is spearheading efforts to promote circular economy, while Chinese car manufacturer Haval pledges it will help Thailand domestically manufacture EV cars. The Federation of Thai Industries said it will promote new innovations that will minimise impacts on the environment and plans to establish a carbon credit trading centre.  Source:  Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 29 October 2021
• Transport Ministry reported that a total of 27 airlines that will carry 15,230 passengers have booked tickets to fly to Thailand from 1-5 November to coincide with the kingdom’s reopening.  Source:  Thansettakij
• The ongoing flooding has affected 5.5 million rais of agricultural land in 51 provinces and caused damages to various types of crop plantations.  This is expected to affect the supplies of crops for exports, in particular the processed food segment.  The supplies of corn, for example, has gone down significantly, with the Ready-to-Eat Meal Association noting that manufacturers have reduced their production capacity for processed corn by 50 percent.  Overall, export for agricultural product is anticipated to be sufficient only for the month of November, but not December this year or January 2022.  As such, the association is in talks with the Thailand’s trading partners to delay export dates.  Source:  Thansettakij

Headlines summary as of 28 October 2021

News

Newly confirmed case(s)	Total Cases	Patients under severe conditions and those using ventilators	Discharged from hospital	From 1 April, totally confirmed cases (third wave)	1st dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	3rd dose vaccine recipients (from 16 July)
9,658 (218 from prisons); (excluding ATK 4,410)	1,884,973 (last seven days: 63,694)	2,281/ 526	1,766,823 (+8,526)	1,856,110	41,075,152 (+357,608) BKK: 8,357,435 (+17,709)	2,267,844 (+51,510) BKK: 625,317 (+6,636)
Local transmission	From abroad	Being hospitalised/ in field-hospital/ quarantined	Confirmed cases in Bangkok	Death toll	Total vaccination (doses)	2nd dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	Percentage of detection rate (past seven days)
9,429 [8,879 (get tested in hospital) + 550 (active case finding)]	11 (in SQ)	99,144 [54,453 in field hospital]	397,222 (+845)	19,006 (+84) (last seven days: 447)	72,812,483 (+  762,954) BKK:  14,899,451 (+ 51,787)	29,469,487 (+  353,836) BKK: 5,916,699 (+27,442)	13.59%

• It is reported that the PM will head the CCSA meeting on 29 October to further easing the restriction in preparation for the 1 November reopening scheme.—Prachachat Turakij

Politics

• The turbulence within the main-ruling Palang Pracharat Party to kick the fallen from grace secretary-general Captain Thammanat will likely to be concluded on 28 October:

• Media citing sources in the PPRP that the Deputy PM and party leader met with main figures who want to oust Capt Thammanat on Wednesday morning. The party leader was reportedly defending the current secretary-general and said that “if it is not Thammanat, then who will take the position?”. When some key figures said that the PM might set up a new party if Thammanat stays, General Prawit said “if the PM is to set up a new party, he will withdraw from politics”.—Naew Na
• Amidst the unconfirmed reports that 8 to 9 PPRP executives have submitted their resignation letter, the Labour Minister and an anti-Thammanat figure Suchart Chomklin came out to admit that he has signed the letter. The Minister denied any PM involvement in this resignation.—Krungthep Turakij
• Captain Thammanat posted on his FB Page last night that even without political position, he remains devoted to work for the people. He said that he is not a conventional politician who is good at public speaking, but he is the person who can deliver.—Krungthep Turakij
• There are other related developments, including the rearrangement of government whip meeting venue from Parliament to that of Government House. The deputy PM secretary said that the arrangement aims to deepen the Executive-Legislative nexus. The first government whip meeting at the new venue will start from 8 November.—Thai Rath

• It is argued that the rearrangement was due to distrust the PM have over the government whip who is reportedly side with Captain Thammanat.
• The government whip Wirat Rattanaset gave an interview denying the reports as there have been a number of places where the government whip convene.—Inside Thailand
• On the other side of the House aisle, main opposition Pheu Thai Party also held its national convention at the North-eastern province of Khon Kaen. Here are the developments so far:

• Sompong Amornvivat, the party leader, announced his resignation allowing the party to nominate its new executives. The daughter of ousted and self-exiled former PM Thaksin Shinawatra was also present at the convention.–ThaiPBS
• Peathongtarn Shinawatra was also nominated as the party advisor.—Krungthep Turakij
• It is likely that a vocal MP from Nan province Chonlanan Srikaew will be nominated as the party leader to modernise the party management.—Khao Sod
• Siam Rath regarded the presence of main figures prior to the convention has indicated that former partner to Thaksin has returned to dominate the party.—Siam Rath

Analysis/ opinion

• Thai Enquirer, citing sources in the PPRP, made an analysis of the ramification of whether to push Captain Thammanat out of the leadership position.

• The removal of Thammanat from the leadership post is problematic for the ruling party as it is likely that Thammanat would not leave lightly and that he might take 20 MPs with him, leaving the coalition stability in question.
• However, if Thammanat is to stay, it is likely that Prayut will form his own party ahead of the next elections and that would leave PPRP losing its strongest attributes.

Economic:

CPTPP 

• DPM Supattanapong said at a forum entitled Creating Thailand Desirable Future that the government plans to participate in CPTPP and pursue an FTA with the EU in 2022 to create an attractive environment to draw foreign investment.  Additionally, the government has also laid down an ecosystem covering infrastructure development, investment in clean energy, electric vehicle promotion and investment in R&D to lure investments and boost economic growth in 2022.  Also for next year, the government eyes implementing 100 infrastructure projects worth 2 trillion Baht, especially in the EEC and the EEC of Innovation (EECi).  DPM Supattanapong reiterated that the Long Term Resident Visa Package will attract income from foreigners to boost the tourism sector that has yet to recover from COVID-19 in the next 1-2 years.
  Source: Bangkok Post Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 28 October 2021
• The government is urged to simplify money transfers and provide more medical staff to support wealthy foreigners to own properties in Thailand through the Long Term Resident Visa package. TDRI noted the Thai economy will struggle to recover if it is not driven by the property sector.  A Long Term Resident service Center is being established and is slated for completion in Q2 of next year.  Source: Bangkok Post
• State run financial institutions are ready to provide liquidity to the 175000 business operators in the EEC area as per the directive of Finance Minister Arkhom.  Source:  Bangkok Post  Krungthep Turakij
• Industry Ministry expects to revise the Manufacturing Production Index growth for 2021 up from 4-5 percent next month as the country is set to reopen in November. Source: Bangkok Post
• The economy is anticipated to grow by more than 1 percent this year, bolstered by improved exports and government measures as well as a gradual recovery in tourism, announced Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith.  Sources: Prachachat Turakij  Bangkok Post
• Tourism operators have called for reciprocity on Thailand’s reopening, urging the government to launch travel bubbles with other countries to remove quarantine on both sides. Source: Bangkok Post

Headlines summary as of 27 October 2021

News

Newly confirmed case(s)	Total Cases	Patients under severe conditions and those using ventilators	Discharged from hospital	From 1 April, totally confirmed cases (third wave)	1st dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	3rd dose vaccine recipients (from 16 July)
8,452 (160 from prisons); (excluding ATK 2,653)	1,875,315 (last seven days: 63,463)	2,355/ 534	1,758,297 (+8,449)	1,846,452	40,717,544  (+ 371,263) BKK: 8,320,207 (+13,123)	2,216,334  (+ 38,999) BKK: 606,267 (+6,145)
Local transmission	From abroad	Being hospitalised/ in field-hospital/ quarantined	Confirmed cases in Bangkok	Death toll	Total vaccination (doses)	2nd dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	Percentage of detection rate (past seven days)
8,285 [7,654 (get tested in hospital) + 631 (active case finding)]	11 (in SQ)	98,096 [55,334 in field hospital]	369,377 (+859)	18,922 (+57) (last seven days: 463)	72,049,529 (+ 812,009) BKK:  178349 (+ 47,342)	29,115,651  (+ 401,747) BKK: 5,861,875 (+28,074)	13.88%

Politics

• The turbulence within the main-ruling Palang Pracharat Party to kick the fallen from grace secretary-general Captain Thammanat to be out of position:
  • It is reported earlier that nine party executives have submitted their resignation letters. It would take more than half of the 26 executive resignation letters for the secretary-general to be out of position and nominate a new executive team. It is reported that within the 26 executive members, Captain Thammanat has a direct control of 8 members; while, there are 9 members remains undecided.—Krungthep Turakij
  • It is reported that the Deputy PM and PPRP leader Prawit has made calls to some party executives to withhold their resignation and has called for the party executives to convene for a meeting on 28 October.–Matichon
  • It is reported that Captain Thammanat went to see the PPRP leader on 26 October seeking General Prawit assistance in the putsches.—Inside Thailand
  • Captain Thammanat gave an interview saying that he has no comment on the matter and will leave the restructuring to the party leader decision and he said he will not do anything to counter the putsch.—Thai Rath
  • The potential putsch is reportedly from the secretary-general idea of conducting a poll to determine who can be the MP candidate. But the party leader said that he did not order conducting the poll.
  • Former Election Commissioner said that the PM is risky violate the organic law of the constitution as he was seen to call the PPRP executives in for a meeting and implementing a ploy to oust Thammanat. The organic law stated that there must be no dominance from extra-party figures.—Krungthep Turakij
• The main opposition Pheu Thai Party is expected to hold its annual convention on 28 October 2021. It is expected that the party leader will resign and nominate a new party leader. It is expected that there are three potential candidates: Tawee Sodsong (opposition Prachachat Party’s secretary-general), Phongthep Thepkanjana (former Deputy PM and Education Minister) and Cholnan Srikaew (vocal veteran MP with close ties to former party chief strategist Sudarat).
  • Cholnan Srikaew gave an interview saying that he will be pleased if he gets the opportunity. He said that if he will be named the party leader, the party will open to everyone, including Sudarat to return to the party. He said that the party will nominate three PM candidates.—Inside Thailand
  • Tawee Sodsong said that legally, it is not possible for him to be the Pheu Thai Party leader and he is determined to keep on working for Prachachat Party.—Krungthep Turakij
  • Meanwhile, Thai Rath pointed out that MP Sutin Klangsaeng is a potential candidate for the party leader.—Thai Rath
• A vocal MP from the Opposition Move Forward Party said that she and other MPs will use their representative status to bail five student-led leaders being remanded for royal defamation charge.—Krungthep Turakij

ASEAN/ World

• Media reports from the Government House that PM Prayut is set to attend the COP 26 Summit held in the UK in person, the first time for him to leave the Kingdom since the pandemic started. It is reported that the itinerary will be from 31 October to 3 November.—Prachachat Turakij
• The White House has revealed that President Joe Biden will attend the US-ASEAN Summit as a dialogue partner. It is expected that POTUS will underline the ASEAN-centrality in resolving regional matters, despite the greater Quad and AUKUS collaborations.—Thai Rath

Analysis/ opinion

• Editors of Than Settakij and Krungthep Turakij have pointed out that the putsch against Captain Thammanat is occurring for two reasons. One is that as the House will be in session from 1 November and the PM must get the PPRP under control before the government get any bill or decree to be voted in the Parliament. And the other reason is that, once the PPRP is under control, the PM can look for the cabinet reshuffle as he has sacked Thammanat out of position earlier.
  • Cabinet Reshuffle: It is expected that Deputy PM and legal pundit Wissanu and Deputy PM and top diplomat Don will resign from positions due to health issues. This would leave the new cabinet looking like.—Nation TV

Deputy PM (legal)	Pirapan Salirathavibhaga (current PPRP leader advisor)
Deputy Interior Minister	Chatchai Promlert (Retired Interior Ministry’s permanent secretary)
Deputy Transport Minister	*as the minister is closed to Thammanat
Foreign minister	Someone who can work with the Commerce Minister under Democrat for the upcoming APEC Summit under Thai Chairmanship
Deputy Labour Minister	*might not be available anymore

• Dulyapak Preecharush, Professor of Southeast Asian Studies, Thammasat University gave an interview on AUKUS and its ramification on the Indo-Pacific Strategy. The historian said that the Indo-Pacific concept could trace back to the idea of oceanic power and British sea colonialism. The academic said that AUKUS will place great challenge on Malaysia (dominance over Malacca Straits) and Indonesia (greater influence of Canberra). Dulapak has suggested an ASEAN armed force to counter-balance the grater dominance over the region by major powers. He has pointed out that the Royal Thai Navy must not use the AUKUS arrangement to legitimise its plan to procure Chinese submarines amidst the pandemic. The security pundit said that Thailand must not take side with neither Beijing nor Washington, but must act as a ‘buffer zone’ in the highly contested region.–Prachatai

Economic:

• Thailand’s September export increased for a seventh consecutive month, bolstered by the economic recovery of trading partners, a weak Baht and government trade promotions.  In summary, export rose by 17.1 percent YoY in September to tally USD23 billion, while import increased by 30.3 percent to USD 22.42 billion, thereby resulting in a trade surplus of USD 609.8 million.  Export of the real sector (excluding gold, oil related products and weaponry) in September rose by 14.8 percent.  In the first 9 months of this year, export increased by 15.5 percent YoY to USD199.9 billion, with imports leaping by 30.9 percent YoY to USD197.98 billion, thus resulting in a trade surplus of USD 2.01 billion.  Products that saw strong export expansion in September are agricultural and food products; work from home products and home appliances.  Source:  Bangkok Post  Ministry of Commerce press release 
• The Eastern Economic Corridor Office (EECO) insisted that the construction of high-speed rail linking the 3 airports of Don Mueang, Suvarnabhumi and U-Tapao will be completed in 4 years as planned.  The EECO dismissed the news that AERA 1, the CP-led consortium that won the bid to build the high-speed rail, is in financial troubles and is unable to secure loans from commercial banks.  EECO clarified that AERA 1 will need to start seeking a loan of around 100 billion Baht in November after the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has delivered 100 percent of the land to AERA 1 and issued a Notice to Proceed. 
• EECO also noted that the company has submitted a request to postpone for 3 months (from 24 October) the payment of 10.7 billion Baht for the operation transfer to the State Railway of Thailand, saying that revenue from the Airport Rail Link services which it will take over on 25 October is unlikely to meet target due to COVID-19.  To this end, the EECO has established a panel to oversee the re-negotiation of payment contract between AERA1 and SRT.  Sources:  Bangkok Post  Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 27 October 2021
• According to the Bank of Thailand’s poll conducted during the Analyst Meeting which was part of the Bangkok FinTech Fair 2021 on 18 October, analysts have slashed GDP growth forecast for the Thai economy to 0.6 percent this year.  However, they expect recovery to start in Q4 this year, after which the economy is poised to rebound in 2022.  Sources:  Naew Na  Prachachat Turakij
• Standard Chartered Bank anticipates that the Thai economy will rebound by 3 percent in 2022 following a forecast of 0 percent growth this year.  The bank will revise its 2022 forecast one month after the country’s reopening in November, and GDP can exceed 3 percent only if export, tourism and domestic consumption see strong recoveries.  Standard Chartered Bank added that fiscal policy will continue to be the main economic driver next year for post-COVID19 Thailand.  Source:  Bangkok Post  The Nation TV
• The University of Thai Chamber of Commerce revealed that modern trade sentiment index rose again after 2 quarters to 47.9 points in Q3, up from 45.3 points in Q2 and 46.3 points in Q1 of 2021.  This is attributable to the relaxation of lockdown measures in October, after which consumers have resumed shopping and retail business is believed to have passed its lowest point.  The index is expected to increase further in Q4 following the country’s reopening in November.  By Q1 2022, modern trade index is forecasted to rise to more than 50 points, fuelled by the government’s co-payment subsidy scheme Khon La Khrueng that is set to inject 45 billion Baht into the Thai economy.  Sources:  Bangkok Post  Thai Rath
• Pico-finance operators are struggling as NPL have reportedly hit a historically high level some 2 years after COVID-19 crippled the economy.  A pico-finance company in Khon Kaen noted that their NPL have surged to 15-30 percent after COVID-19 struck compared to 8-12 percent in the pre-COVID period. Clients of pico-finance loans are mainly from the grassroot level, such as farmers, housewives and small-time store owners who are unable to access loans from the formal sector.  The pico-finance operators expect the slump to continue until mid-2025 and asked the government for assistance.  Source:  Prachachart Turakij

Headlines summary as of 26 October 2021

News

Newly confirmed case(s)	Total Cases	Patients under severe conditions and those using ventilators	Discharged from hospital	From 1 April, totally confirmed cases (third wave)	1st dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	3rd dose vaccine recipients (from 16 July)
7,706 (128 from prisons); (excluding ATK 2,304)	1,866,863 (last seven days: 63,929)	2,414/ 544	1,749,848 (+9,532)	1,838,000	40,346,281 (+ 346,589) BKK: 8,299,860 (+9,065)	2,177,335 (+ 43,756) BKK: 593,249 (+5,382)
Local transmission	From abroad	Being hospitalised/ in field-hospital/ quarantined	Confirmed cases in Bangkok	Death toll	Total vaccination (doses)	2nd dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)
7,568 [7,234 (get tested in hospital) + 334 (active case finding)]	11 (in SQ)	98,150 [56,254 in field hospital]	395,518 (+901)	18,865 (+66) (last seven days: 458)	71,237,520 (+ 731,718) BKK:  14,708,522 (+ 45,465)	28,713,904 (+ 341,373) BKK: 5,815,413 (+31,018)

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has barred Thammasat University from importing the Hungary-donated Moderna vaccines, citing the University is not a state entity. In a clarification letter, the Ministry has asked the university to contact with the Department of Disease Control as the donation was not conducted by the state-to-state basis and that the Ministry has not received the notification through diplomatic channel.–ThaiPBS, Nation Thailand
  • Earlier, Thammasat University has issued a university order to allow itself to import ‘alternative’ vaccines (other than the state-sponsored vaccines) in the same way as the Royal Chulabhorn Institute has imported the Sinopharm vaccines.—Thai Post
• The Department of Disease Control announced that the authority has detected a case of Delta Plus variant but has informed the public not to over-concern on the new variant. The man had been working in Ayutthaya province.—Khao Sod
• A survey conducted by the Department of Health has indicated that some 94 percent of the Thai people are still concerned about the Covid-19 situation once the country reopens from November 1. The survey showed, however, that only 28% are confident with the current disease control measure.—Nation Thailand
• The Defence Ministry spokesperson said that there has been a spike in numbers of Myanmar migrant workers into Thailand after the political situation has turned to be more violent.–Matichon

Politics

• The main-ruling Palang Pracharat Party is in the other great wave of change as it is highly expected that the more than half of the party executives will resign rendering the fallen-from-grace secretary-general out of position.
  • The potential putsch is reportedly from the secretary-general idea of conducting a poll to determine who can be the MP candidate. But the party leader said that he did not order conducting the poll.
  • On 25 October, seven PPRP ministers reportedly convened with the PM at the Government House.–Matichon
  • The government whip and the PPRP MP said that the rearrangement of the party executive is the matter of the party leader and the secretary-general. He said that there will be a meeting within this week to sort out the disagreement.–Matichon
  • The party leader said that he is thinking about restructuring the party, but did not reply whether he will kick out the secretary-general.–Matichon
  • The party spokesperson announced that the party is set to restructure the party management, but the process is yet to be finalised.—Krungthep Turakij
  • It is expected that the Labour Minister and a party main figure is set to become the party next secretary-general when the current one is out.—Krungthep Turakij
• The main opposition Pheu Thai Party is expected to hold its annual convention on 28 October 2021. It is expected that the party will indicate MPs recruitment committee and nominate vacant executive positions.—Krungthep Turakij
• Sombut Boonngam-anong, the leader of the car mob protestor said that he is eyeing to call for the other car mob against the PM in November. He said that he will not join the student-led protest on 31 October as he will be in other provinces.–Matichon

ASEAN/ World

• The Thai PM attended the 38^th ASEAN Summit via teleconference. The government spokesperson said that the PM has said that Covid-19 has shown the fragility of the region against threats. PM Prayut said that there should be a lesson-learned from the pandemic to strengthen ASEAN community. The PM has expressed his support for the Bio-Circular-Green Economy Model as a key instrument to realise sustainable development.—Bangkok Post The full speech can be found at Thai PR Department

Economic

• CPTPP
  • Academic Dr Somchai Pakapaswiwat prompts the Thai government to accede to CPTPP or risk losing out to other ASEAN countries that are CPTPP members such as Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore.  If Thailand does not join the trade pact, he said it could be subjected to trade barriers as other member countries seek to establish high-level CPTPP trade standards.  Foreign investors will also choose to invest in Vietnam and Malaysia over Thailand.  If China, Taiwan and the UK successfully accede to CPTPP, Thailand will lose its trade advantages with Taiwan the most since it as does not have any trade agreement with Taiwan.  He noted that the pros of Thailand acceding to the CPTPP outweigh the cons, but at the same time the government must negotiate to ensure that Thailand has sufficient transition period and minimise the impacts on the people.  Source:  Matichon

• RCEP
  • Ministry of Commerce revealed that it recently convened a meeting to finalise the RCEP Form-R in preparation for its enforcement on 1 January 2022.  RCEP Form-R allows importers to benefit from preferential tariffs under RCEP agreement and is expected to be enforced through an online system.  Source:  Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 25 October 2021

• Tourism
  • PM Prayut has set aside funds for COVID-19 rehabilitation and schemes to spur the economy.  Of this budget, 100 million Baht will be spent hiring Thailand-born K-Pop singer Lisa Manobal of Blackpink and Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli to perform in Thailand for New Year’s Eve celebration. The extravagant spending on such event came under fire after critics said the funds is better spent on supporting SMEs.  Source:  Bangkok Post
  • Tourism Authority of Thailand will replace the Certificate of Entry with Thailand Pass in order to boost tourism during the high season and to coincide with the 1 November reopening of Thailand to tourists without quarantine from 26 countries.  Thailand Pass is a web-based system developed by Ministry of Foreign Affairs and DEPA, wherein documents must be submitted through the website www.tp.consular.go.th.  To this end, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will launch a guidebook on the application of Thailand Pass for tourists.
  • Tourists from other countries are permitted only to travel through the 17 ‘Blue Zone’ provinces.  For travels beyond the Blue Zone provinces, they will be to undertake a 7-day quarantine. 
  • As of 24 October, the Phuket Sandbox scheme has reported room bookings throughout July-September of 541925 nights and 55,772 tourists.  For October, its bookings totalled 233,866 nights and it expects forward booking for November and December totalling 134086 nights.  Source:  Krungthep Turakij
  • The newly-launched Tour Teaw Thai domestic tourism campaign, which sees the government subsidising 40 percent of tour packages of up to 5,000 Baht for 1 million people, received lukewarm participation from travellers and tourism operators.  From 8 -20 October, only 383 tour packages were sold from the total of 255.  This is in contrast with the popularity of another domestic tourism scheme, We Travelled Together, which saw over 170,000 room nights booked.  Travellers prefer the latter’s hotel subsidy scheme, which is more flexible than the tour packages offered by the former.  Source:  Bangkok Post

• Others
  • PM Prayut has instructed DPM and Commerce Minister Jurin to investigate CNN’s report that tens of millions of counterfeit medical gloves are imported into the US from Thailand.   The CNN news touched on 2 cases of counterfeit medical gloves from Thailand.  The first involved unauthorised production and repackaging of medical gloves and unlawful usage of 2 trademarks into the US.  The second case revolved around the production of counterfeit nitrite medical gloves by Athip Chumphon.  Source:  Bangkok Post
  • Finance Ministry (MoF) aims to cut import tariffs on Electronic Vehicles in 2022 in a move to meet the government’s goal that 30 percent of all cars produced in Thailand will be EVs by 2025.  In addition to tax incentives, MoF will also introduce other non-tax incentives through a comprehensive package, to be implemented on 1 January 2022.  Currently all imported EVS are subject to an 80 percent tariff, with the exception of EVs from China that are exempted from tariff under the ASEAN-China FTA. 
  • NESDC was reported to have convened a meeting yesterday to consider Finance Ministry’s guidelines on the implementation of tariff cut on wine, alcoholic beverages and cigarette as part of the Long-Term resident visa package.  Sources:  Bangkok Post  Krungthep Turakij

Headlines summary as of 25 October 2021

News

Newly confirmed case(s)	Total Cases	Patients under severe conditions and those using ventilators	Discharged from hospital	From 1 April, totally confirmed cases (third wave)	1st dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	3rd dose vaccine recipients (from 16 July)
8,675 (201 from prisons); (excluding ATK 3,525)	1,859,157 (last seven days: 65,345)	2,437/ 536	1,740,316 (+9,589)	1,830,294	39,999,692  (+118,658) BKK: 8,274,305 (+5,213)	2,133,579 (+11,154) BKK: 579,571 (+483)
Local transmission	From abroad	Being hospitalised/ in field-hospital/ quarantined	Confirmed cases in Bangkok	Death toll	Total vaccination (doses)	2nd dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)
8,463 [7,931 (get tested in hospital) + 532 (active case finding)]	11 (in SQ)	100,042 [57,789 in field hospital]	389,932 (+1,020)	18,799 (+44) (last seven days: 463)	70,505,802 (+226,178) BKK:  14,620,573 (+ 12,180)	28,372,531 (+96,366) BKK: 5,766,697 (+6,484)

• The Commerce Minister is set to look into the CNN-report on Thailand exported filthy and used medical gloves to the US. The Minister said he will swiftly make things right if there are things under his jurisdiction.—Krungthep Turakij

Politics

• All eyes are on who will be the next main opposition Pheu Thai PM candidate. Despite the earlier reports that the name will be nominated at the Party annual convention on 28 October, but yesterday the Deputy head of the party said that the party will announce the name(s) when the House is dissolved or there have been confirmed election date.—Krungthep Turakij
• Nida Poll has released its latest finding of the popularity of Pheu Thai Party in the Northeast–the party’s political stronghold.
  • The finding showed that 70.59% of the respondents said they voted for Pheu Thai Party; meanwhile, 29.41% showed that they have not voted for the party.
  • On whether the respondents will vote for Pheu Thai in the next election: 48.33 percent said they will definitely vote for the party, 37.12% said they remains unsure, and 12.35 percent said they will not vote for Pheu Thai.—Nida Poll
• There has been a turbulence within the main-ruling Palang Pracharat Party as the party secretary-general has come up with an idea of conducting a popularity poll for its MP candidates:
  • Sources in the PPRP said that some of the MPs are concerned that this poll will legitimise the preferential treatment for MPs in the secretary-general clique. It is reported that Thammanat, the secretary-general, will focus on the Bangkok and Southern MPs as he believed that the MPs in the area won because of Prayut popularity. There will be a meeting for MPs recruitment committee on 26 October.—Krungthep Turakij
  • The aides to Captain Thammanat gave an interview confirming that the reports and said that the poll was done with the help of Dusit Poll and Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC). The MP said that the poll is not conducted in particular areas, but nationwide.—Inside Thailand
  • The government whip and PPRP MP said that the poll did not cultivate preferential treatment, but just to make sure that the party MP candidate will win the election.—Krungthep Turakij
  • The Deputy PM and party leader said, however, that he did not order the secretary-general to make the popularity poll. He said that the former MP candidate must have the priority in being nominated before the new candidate.–Matichon
• Prachachat Turakij has published the political thoughts on various issues, including his take on the student-led protestor demands on monarchical reforms. Srettha Thavisin is believed to be one of the Pheu Thai PM candidates.—Prachachat Turakij
• After being off public attention for quite some times, the student-led protest is calling for a major gathering at CBD Ratchaprasong Intersection on 31 October from 4.00pm. The organisers announced that there will be a signatory for the abolishment of royal defamation laws.–Matichon

Australia

• The meeting where Ambassador met with Russell Crowe and the Cultural Minister was featured on all media outlets.—Nation Thailand, Bangkok Post,  Thai Government, Krungthep Turakij,  Thai News Agency, Siam Rath, TNN, Matichon, WorkPointToday,  Naew Na, Daily News, The Standard, Channel7,
  • Media also mentioned about the Embassy Rabbit Card given as a gift to the Hollywood star and the Minister.—Channel 3, JS100, Kom Chad Leuk, Manager, Siam Rath, Nation TV, Bright TV
• The tweet to congratulate the Thai-Australian beauty pageant to be crowned Miss Universe Thailand 2021 was reported on Thai media.—Prachachat Turakij, Matichon

Economic:

CPTPP

Foreign Ministry’s International Economic Policy Committee said it is preparing a letter of intent to be signed by its Chair, Foreign Minister Don, who supports Thailand to join the negotiation for CPTPP accession. The Committee met last Monday and instructed all related agencies to compile additional issues such as Thailand’s areas of concern, reservation list and transition period within 30-45 days.  Commerce Ministry’s Trade Policy and Strategy Office, which serves as the Committee’s secretary, will compile these additional issues. These issues will be included in the negotiation framework for CPTPP, which upon completion will be filed for the cabinet’s approval. 

• The Committee also urged related agencies to establish a remedial FTA fund to assist those affected by Thailand’s accession to the trade pact.  In the pipeline is also the plan to launch a public relations panel to tackle fake news and disseminate correct information on CPTPP.  Sources:  Bangkok Post   Krungthep Turakij

Others

• The Bank of Thailand (BOT) has further eased the Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio for mortgage lending to allow homebuyers to borrow loans of up to 100 percent in a bid to boost the property sector past Covid-19.  The temporary relaxation is effective as of 20 October 2021 until the end of 2022.  Banks are allowed to approve housing loans for borrowers of up to 10 percent of the total home value for all types of mortgage loan contracts.  Additionally, BOT also allows an LTV ratio of up to 110 percent with a combined mortgage loan and top-up loan for home decoration for a first home priced below 10 million Baht.  The LTV relaxation is expected to attract capital worth 9.8 percent of GDP into the Thai economy and create employment for 2.8 million people. Source:  Bangkok Post Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 22 October 2021

Last week the cabinet had approved of increasing funding for 4 government stimulus measures, namely:

• Raising monthly stipends for state welfare cardholders and vulnerable groups by 300 Baht for November and December, totalling 600 Baht.  These stimulus measures are now in their 3^rd phase
• Approved additional 1,500 Baht fund of subsidies for participants of the government’s 3^rd phase of the Khon La Krueng co-payment scheme for November and December 
• Ying Chai Ying Dai tax rebate scheme will grant the maximum e-voucher of 10,000 Baht to participants who meet the 60,000 Baht spending criteria, effective from 1-30 November.  This is a 3,000 Baht addition to the previous limit set on the e-voucher of 7,000 Baht.  Source:  National News Bureau of Thailand fb page
• The Excise Department was given the authority to not approve cigarette importers from selling the product at an unusually low price following changes in the tax structure since 1 October, which is expected to drive up the retail price of cigarettes.  The Excise Dept insists the new tax structure will curb both the sales of illegal cigarettes as well as disincentivise Thais to smoke and improve their health.  Sources:  Bangkok Post  Krungthep Turakij 
• Federation of Thai Industries anticipates car production to grow beyond the target of 1.6 million units this year as COvID-19 infection declines and semi-conductor shortage eases.  Source:  Bangkok Post
• A consortium led by Charoen Pokphand Group is set will take over the operations of Airport Rail Link (ARL) services today, according to the Department of Rail Transport (DRT).  AERA1, formerly known as Eastern High-Speed Rail Linking Three Airports Co Ltd, is CP-led consortium that won the bid to build the high-speed rail linking 3 airports of Don Mueang, Suvarnabhumi and U-Tapao with a plan to completely take over the ARL’s operations this year.  Source:  Bangkok Post

Headlines summary as of 15 October 2021

News

Newly confirmed case(s)	Total Cases	Patients under severe conditions and those using ventilators	Discharged from hospital	From 1 April, totally confirmed cases (third wave)	1st dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	3rd dose vaccine recipients (from 16 July)
10,486 (167 from prisons); (excluding ATK 3,577)	1,762,190 (last seven days: 72,753)	2,897/ 684	1,636,461 (+10,711)	1,733,327	36,721,779  (+ 481,973 ) BKK: 7,989,020 (+14,043)	1,880,193 (+  42,723) BKK: 488,865 (+4,789)
Local transmission	From abroad	Being hospitalised/ in field-hospital/ quarantined	Confirmed cases in Bangkok	Death toll	Total vaccination (doses)	2nd dose vaccine recipients (from 28 Feb)	Active detection test rates (last seven days)
10,277 [9,410 (get tested in hospital) +867 (active case finding)]	42 (in SQ)	107,606 [66,452 in field hospital]	384,687 (+1,054)	18,123 (+94) (last seven days: 589)	63,614,352 (+ 1,034,549) BKK:  13,502,883 (+ 109,904)	25,012,380  (+ 509,853 ) BKK: 5,024,998 (+63,748)	14.68%

• The Japanese ambassador has met with the PM to discuss on easing the entry restriction for Japanese travelling to Thailand.—Krungthep Turakij

Politics

• There were a numbers of developments on 14 October as it marked the 48^th anniversary of the 14 October 1973 student uprising:
  • Student-led activists ‘Ratsadorn’ group celebrated its one year anniversary of the most progressive and anti-establishment movement. Ratsadorn group managed to march to the Government House before being dispersed on the morning after. The group is calling for a major protest on 31 October.–Matichon
  • The police patrol car was hit with a small bomb when the police was securing the perimeter of the Democracy Monument when the anarchy-prone Talu Gas Group announced the gathering in the area.—Thai Rath
• The PM reiterated once again yesterday that he does not have an intention to dissolve the Parliament.  In response to the reports that there are resistance against the PM advisor Piraphan taking a greater role in the main-ruling PPRP, the PM declined to comment.—Khao Sod
• The Deputy PM and government legal pundit Wissanu said that it will take long for the electoral bylaws to be finalised as the King has not approved the amendment motion.
• Former Red Shirt leader and anti-PM main figure Jatuporn Promphan has been released from detention from prison after being detained for 97 days. The former Red Shirt leader was in jail for his role in protest in-front of the house of late Privy Council president – Prem Tinsulanonda.—Prachachat Turakij
• A Harvard Professor has sent a warning to current Harvard students studying abroad or looking to attend events in Thailand that they may face punitive action due to deteriorating academic freedoms. The warning suggested that students attending events at that university should be aware that they place themselves under the same threat of punitive action as local students.—Thai Enquirer

Economic

CPTPP

• Following PM Prayut’s announcement that Thailand should accede to the CPTPP, an anonymous source from the government house disclosed that the government is planning to establish a CPTPP fund worth around 10 billion Baht to provide remedy to those affected by CPTPP.  Currently the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce, Agriculture & Cooperative Ministry and NESDC are working to fine tune the details of the fund’s mechanism.  The CPTPP fund is being established as per the earlier recommendation of the report compiled by the parliament-appointed CPTPP committee.  The impetus behind the government’s support for Thailand to join the trade pact include 1) China’s potential accession to CPTPP which would significantly increase market access; 2) relocation potential of companies affected by conflicts between China-Taiwan, US – China and 3) Thailand’s APEC Chairmanship in 2022.  Ministry of Commerce also added that it is designing an FTA fund worth some 5 billion Baht to assist those afflicted by free trade agreements in general.  Source:  Krungthep Turakij newspaper, 15 October 2021

Others

• Tourism and Sports Ministry (MoST) plans on allocating 500 – 600 million Baht to host concerts in Bangkok and Phuket to mark Thailand’s reopening.  The concerts will feature performances by Thai-born K-pop singer Lisa Manoban in Phuket and Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli in Bangkok.  The performance date is not yet confirmed, but MoST aims for it to coincide with the New Year.  The event is to be co-hosted by the government and private sector, with the former contributing 200 million Baht and the latter 300 – 400 million Baht via private sponsorship.  Source:  Bangkok Post
• PM Prayut hails Fitch Ratings’ most recent assessment of the Thai economy, which indicated that Thailand’s economic recovery in 2022 will be supported by improved COVID-19 vaccination rollout, the reopening of businesses and positive global growth environment.  Recovery of the tourism sector is expected to be gradual, with the Thai GDP forecasted to rebound to pre-pandemic level in early 2023.  The ratings of most major corporations in Thailand have stabilised, but sectors such as hospitality, retail, and banking remained under earnings pressure.  Source:  Thai Government Public Relations Department  Post Today  Bangkok Post
• Thailand’s economy has bottomed out in Q3 of this year and will continue to recover, although uncertainty remains high, according to the minutes of the Bank of Thailand’s last policy meeting released on Wednesday.  It expects the Thai economy to grow by 0.7 percent in 2021 and 3.9 percent in 2022.   Export will be hampered by supply chain disruption while the tourism sector will see slow recovery. Source:  Bangkok Post The Nation TV
• The BOT’s Puey Ungphakorn Institution for Economic Research also revealed that Thailand’s differences of opinions could affect Thailand’s economic growth, given that people’s social trust ad reconciliation scores had decline over a 10-year period.  Source:  Bangkok Post 
• Board of Investment had helped companies secure 248 business pairings worth some 952 million Baht in trade value at the 2021 Subcon Thailand, ASEAN’s largest international industrial subcontracting event which ended on 27 September.  However, this is a slight decline from the BOI’s estimate.  Source:  Bangkok Post
• ASEAN members are accelerating efforts to upgrade the digital economy within the bloc to brave the digital challenge that is accelerated by the pandemic.  Ministry of Commerce’s Trade Negotiations Department is to attend the upcoming 20^th ASEAN Economic Community Council meeting on 18 October, which will be the first time the AEC Council meets with ASEAN’s digital ministers.  They aim to exchange views on forging greater synergies between relevant sectors to prepare the region for digital era.  Source:  Bangkok Post
• Complaints about unfair trade competition have risen the last 4 years since the Office of the Trade Competition Commission was established as an independent agency on Oct 5, 2017.  As of September this year, the OTCC had received 99 complaints about unfair trade competition. Of the total, 2 were filed in 2017; 11 in 2018; 20 in 2019; 30 in 2020; and 36 in 2021.  Source:  Bangkok Post