The Ministry of Finance is collaborating with the capital market to create a "Growth Story" to attract foreign investment, hoping to push the Thai stock market back to 1,800 points.
The Ministry of Finance and the capital market are joining forces to promote "Thailand Growth Story," using capital market mechanisms to drive the economy and transform Thailand from a safe haven to a permanent investment destination. They hope to attract massive investment from the Middle East and China, and are accelerating the conclusion of the TISA (Thailand Insurance Agency) and Infrastructure Fund projects, aiming for a return to 1,800 points for the Thai stock market.
June 11, 2569, at the Ministry of Finance. Mr. Atsadej Kongsiri, Director and Managing Director of the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Mr. Paiboon Nalintrungkur, Chairman of the Federation of Thai Capital Market Businesses (FETCO) Enter into discussions with Dr. Ekniti Nitithanpraphat, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance To discuss how to use the Thai capital market to help drive the Thai economy.
Dr. Santithar Sathienthai, Assistant Minister of Finance. It has been revealed that, given the volatile global situation, Thailand has become a target of interest for investors as a safe haven. Therefore, Thailand should seize this opportunity to present a clear "Thailand Growth Story" to build confidence and attract investors.
"What Thailand's economy and capital markets have in common is that they have a clear growth story. People who are interested in Thailand want to know what our story is."
This A clear growth story for Thailand. Specifically, the 5T policy of Dr. Ekniti Nitithanprapas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, which focuses on Energy Transition and the creation of Green Industry, represents a new growth story for Thailand, emerging at a time when many countries are facing policy uncertainty.
"Currently, both the policy and capital market sectors agree that this is a crucial time for Thailand. The world is changing, and many people are looking for safe havens. Capital is increasingly flowing into ASEAN, and Thailand is regaining special attention. Furthermore, this year we remain in the spotlight because we will be hosting the World Bank-IMF conferences. We must make the most of these platforms."
Mr. Paiboon Nalintrungkur, Chairman of the Federation of Thai Capital Market Businesses (FETCO) It was revealed that the key issue in today's discussion was how the capital market could utilize its mechanisms to help drive the Thai economy in terms of demand, supply, and infrastructure.
"We agree that Thailand is currently in a very good period, with the capital market starting to recover. Therefore, we must build on this by using the capital market to drive government policy."
However, future measures may not focus on further capital market stimulation but rather on increased investment.
"Thailand is now entering a new investment cycle, and today the capital market is the most readily available source of funding for the government. The capital market is signaling that we are ready to work with the government to drive the economy forward together. Because Thailand has a high level of debt, the government needs to look to the capital side, and we are well-prepared with ample liquidity."
In addition, the meeting discussed attracting funds from large funds in the Middle East, which currently have enormous liquidity and are looking for new, lower-risk investment sources than in their original region, as well as exploring ways to attract investment from China. Both the government and the capital market sector agree that it is necessary to urgently review and amend regulations that are obstacles in order to facilitate the inflow of these funds.
"To attract investment from the Middle Eastern market, we need to examine what regulatory obstacles we face and how to make ourselves more attractive. We need to offer appealing products, such as specific funds that they might be interested in. We discussed product development today. Since the beginning of the year, they've viewed us as an attractive market, but we don't want to be just a safe haven; we want to show that this safe haven also has a growth story. Therefore, we need to quickly develop this story to prevent Thai stocks from slumping, because if they do, it will be difficult to recover. The current situation is good."
For updates on the TISA (Thai Investment Savings Account) program. A brief discussion took place today, and currently only a few details remain to be finalized. All parties agreed on two key principles:
- Investment flexibility allows investors to set a single limit on the amount of their investment they can manage themselves or choose to invest through mutual funds. This is no longer limited to purchasing mutual funds as in the past. However, the exact amount of this limit has not yet been finalized.
- Permanent tax benefit status would make it a continuous tax measure, similar to other basic tax deductions, to prevent a "time bomb" problem like the LTF fund case, where a simultaneous sell-off occurred upon reaching the specified time limit, impacting the market.
Furthermore, it was proposed that the government use the capital market as a source of funding through an infrastructure fund, with new assets continuously being added to the fund, such as assets related to electricity or clean energy.
“Currently, we already have an Infrastructure Fund. However, the government may face challenges due to high public debt, which often requires borrowing for construction. Therefore, we propose that we offer a channel for raising funds, leveraging our existing resources to develop new projects. These projects must be attractive by incorporating a growth story and clear future prospects to build investor expectations. We believe projects worth hundreds of billions of baht would be ideal, but the key is for them to be compelling. We expect to see results sometime in 2569.”
Whether the Thai stock index can reach 2,000 points in 2569 depends largely on the government's performance. However, the previous all-time high for the Thai stock market was only around 1,800 points. Therefore, the goal should be to reach that previous high first.
"Right now, reaching over 2,000 points is unlikely. Don't get your hopes up yet, because the previous high was only 1,800. Returning to that high this year doesn't seem easy, especially with the ongoing conflict and its uncertain duration creating anxiety, making investors hesitant to make full-scale buying decisions."
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