Thailand's sovereign credit rating should be upgraded, as the government's interest payment burden is relatively low, says Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira.
According to Mr Pichai, the government's interest payment burden is only 9% of its revenue, which is lower than the 12% threshold set by the Public Debt Management Office.
"Thailand's sovereign credit rating is still at BBB+, which I believe is lower than it should be. I think the country should have a credit rating of A-," he said.
"If Thailand's economic situation is compared with other countries that have an A- rating, I do not see much difference in Thailand's economic status and those countries."
Regarding concerns about political stability potentially affecting the country's credit rating, Mr Pichai said there is not much difference between Thailand and other countries with better ratings, as political issues exist everywhere.
According to the Fiscal Policy Office, economic growth this year is forecast at 2.2-3.2%, with an average of 2.7%, up from 1.9% in 2023. This growth is expected to be driven by the recovering tourism sector.
The National Economic and Social Development Council forecasts GDP growth this year of 2.3-2.8%, with an average of 2.5%.
Private consumption and private investment are expected to grow by 4.5% and 0.3%, respectively, while exports are projected to grow by 2%. The current account surplus is projected to be 2.3% of GDP, while inflation is expected to be between 0.4% and 0.9%.
Mr Pichai also commented on the reduction of debt repayments under Section 28 of the State Financial and Fiscal Discipline Act, noting it does not affect the liquidity of state financial institutions, which currently have excess liquidity.
He said the reduction of debt repayments to state financial institutions is beneficial for them because they have excess funds and often do not know how to manage them.
By leaving the excess funds with state financial institutions, they will continue to receive interest from the Finance Ministry, said Mr Pichai.
Under Section 28 of the law, which allows the Finance Ministry to borrow from state financial institutions to fund state projects and repay them later, borrowing is capped at 32% of the annual budget.
Current borrowing remains within this limit. However, he said the burden under this section depends on several factors, including additional borrowing for future projects and the debt repayment budget under Section 28.