Stock trading volume will be impacted if the government introduces a transaction tax on securities trades on the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the bourse president said on Friday.
Pakorn Peetathawatchai was speaking at a news conference after media reports that from 2022, the government was planning to impose a 0.1% tax on equities trades by entities whose monthly trading volume is more than 1 million baht.
"It's a policy of the government that sees a need to collect such tax, which has been waived for a long time, and it has to use tax money to stimulate the economy," Mr Pakorn said.
If the tax is imposed, some investors will be affected, particularly those involved in high-frequency trading, which accounts for 20%-30% of a current daily turnover of around 90 billion baht ($2.7 billion), he added.
"We have to wait to see and how we have to adjust," he said.
The tax was like a Tobin tax applied on financial transactions, akin to those in India and Taiwan.
On Friday, Finance minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith declined to comment on the tax when asked by reporters.
The main stock index was down about 0.4% in early afternoon trade.
