It is probably premature to offer an assessment of the COVID-19 pandemic’s possible consequences, not least because there may well be many more twists and turns to come. And once we defeat the coronavirus, some of the pandemic-induced changes to our lives might turn out to have been temporary.
In sharing their opinions regarding what their government should prioritise in the 2020 fiscal budget, 65.9 percent of Thais polled by the Super Poll Research Centre placed healthcare as their top concern.
In a few months’ time, the current Thai government’s position could be hanging in the balance. This is thanks to the country’s 3.2-trillion-baht (US$105.6 billion) fiscal 2020 budget which will have its third reading on 9 January next year. The 2020 fiscal year began on 1 October and its first reading was held recently on 19 October. The second and third readings of the budget bill, however, will not be held until 8 and 9 January, respectively.
Almost four million new jobs, rising wages and eight interest-rate cuts in Indonesia should have been enough to spur consumers into action in the world’s fourth most populous nation.Instead, an increasing number of people are keeping a tight grip on their purse strings and putting their money in the bank, leaving policy makers and economists perplexed.
