Current Thai economic problem would continue at least two years and at most four years, but would still be less severe than when the country was hit by financial crisis in 1997, according to Somjai Phagapasvivat, an economics lecturer at Bangkok's Thammasat University.
Dr. Somjai said his less severity projection on the country's economy was based on the lifting of trade barriers by several countries while they also injected money into the equity market to cushion the impact.
On the part of Thailand, which relies on exports and tourism for 70 per cent of its total revenue, the government must quickly boosting the country's exports and tourism business and use both monetary and financial measures, he said.
The government must also more quickly solve short-term unemployment, which is expected to soar to about one million in 2009, because a decline of every one per cent of gross domestic product would create some 350,000 people becoming jobless and at the same time boost competitiveness in the private sector, Dr. Somjai said.
The academic said he fully agreed with the government which assumed power on December 23 to use tax measures in boosting economy because the measure is used by every country. Most importantly, tax measures must be used to stimulate consumption and reduce unemployment.
