Thailand Unveils $16 Billion Borrowing to Fund Covid Relief

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn endorsed a $16 billion borrowing plan to shield Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy from the impact of a raging coronavirus outbreak that’s threatening a nascent recovery and plans to reopen borders to tourists.

The government can borrow 500 billion baht ($16 billion) in the local or overseas markets to finance Covid relief measures for the public and businesses, according to a Royal Gazette announcement published Tuesday. The new debt, raised as loans or through sales of other securities, has to be wrapped up by September 2022, it said.

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