Analysts shrug at new scheme
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Rather than revving up consumer spending, the key to fixing the economy is mass vaccination
published :
17 May 2021 at 04:30
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The Ying Chai Ying Dai scheme targets 4 million shoppers with high purchasing power, aiming to increase consumer spending during the pandemic. (Photo by Pornprom Satrabhaya)
With a slow vaccine rollout, mounting Covid-19 cases and new variants entering the country, Thailand's economic future seems more uncertain than ever.
Multiple times this year Thailand's GDP growth forecast has been lowered by both domestic and international institutions, and could end up being 1%, following a contraction of 6.1% in 2020.
To combat these cratering GDP prognostications, the government unveiled an ambitious new programme to spur consumer spending and nudge upwards economic indicators this year: "Ying Chai Ying Dai" (the more you spend, the more you get).