(Photo by Pornprom Satrabhaya)The Finance Ministry is considering the possibility of borrowing under the Public Debt Management Act to finance new state investment projects in case the 3.2-trillion-baht budget expenditure for fiscal 2020 hits further snags. Solutions to push public investment to boost the country's economic growth are crucial amid the export slowdown, as the state investment budget is quite high at 600 billion baht this fiscal year, said an informed source at the Finance Ministry. Such borrowing must be disbursed to state projects, investment for which is ready to start. The act, which has been enforced since April 2018, is designed to maximise budget spending and prevent politicians from repeatedly using off-budget borrowing to finance projects. Foreign-denominated public debt must not exceed 10% of overall public debt and 5% of exports and services.

Source: Bangkok Post January 26, 2020 23:15 UTC