News Forum - Poll: 92% don’t earn more than their expenses; oil price main factor

[Thaiger]

A new poll revealed that over 90% of people are not earning more money than their expenses, and that, of all the expenses people are grappling with in the current economy, oil prices are the main factor they say has the greatest effect on their daily lives. The new poll, conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration, saw the skyrocketing prices at petrol stations to be on the majority of people’s minds. Despite a recent dip in the prices at the pump in the last few days, people in the current economic climate in Thailand are concerned with oil […]

The story Poll: 92% don’t earn more than their expenses; oil price main factor as seen on Thaiger News.

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[astro]

I wonder how much driving these 92% do on a daily basis, if the price of petrol affects them more than that of food and other expenses?

[dmacarelli]

The economy here is in far worse shape than any official is willing to admit. Real estate sales are down, new car sales have plummeted, savings are down. Tourism is down. Cha-cha was successful in turning the tiger of SE Asia into an anemic, sickly alley cat. 

[DoUKnowWhoIAm]

House of cards - condo market finally gonna collapse?

[astro]

2 hours ago, DoUKnowWhoIAm said:

House of cards - condo market finally gonna collapse?

The borders are open again, so foreign buyers may pick up the slack. Then spending power should increase in Thailand.

On the other hand, I wouldn't buy a condo now in a place I was barred from entering for two years.

 

I couldn't even access my bank account because of an app upgrade.

"Gotta come to your branch in person Sir."

T.i.T.

Edited July 10, 2022 by astro

[BIGGLES]

They really are going to have to treat all foreigners, especially retirees with a whole load more respect.

Hopefully it maybe similar to that shown 35 years ago. Difference then of course, was they knew that they had nothing and had not experienced having something. 

Even in this climate, fundamentally the Thai's are lazy (the men that is). Consequently, you see foreign labour encouraged to come and work in the country, as the Thai's will not work.

When you're dirt poor, you don't need a car, pick-up, mobile phone etc. You need food, and a roof over your head. The rest is aspirational. Nothing wrong with aspirations, just get off your arse and make it happen. Alternatively, cut your cloth accordingly. 

We westerners must remember that this is a third world country, and not pay for anything as if it is first world, otherwise we do ourselves no favours.

 

Edited July 10, 2022 by BIGGLES

[yselmike]

8 hours ago, BIGGLES said:

They really are going to have to treat all foreigners, especially retirees with a whole load more respect.

Hopefully it maybe similar to that shown 35 years ago. Difference then of course, was they knew that they had nothing and had not experienced having something. 

Even in this climate, fundamentally the Thai's are lazy (the men that is). Consequently, you see foreign labour encouraged to come and work in the country, as the Thai's will not work.

When you're dirt poor, you don't need a car, pick-up, mobile phone etc. You need food, and a roof over your head. The rest is aspirational. Nothing wrong with aspirations, just get off your arse and make it happen. Alternatively, cut your cloth accordingly. 

We westerners must remember that this is a third world country, and not pay for anything as if it is first world, otherwise we do ourselves no favours.

The ghost of Norman Tebbit !

[KaptainRob]

8 hours ago, BIGGLES said:

We westerners must remember that this is a third world country, and not pay for anything as if it is first world, otherwise we do ourselves no favours.

You are incorrectly using cold war terminology, "3rd World".   Thailand is a 'developing country' although certainly well advanced compared with many of it's near neighbours.

Thai's live hand-to-mouth, there is no incentive to SAVE money and indeed the same is trending in the West also with rising consumerism.

Thai's have a love of new cars and new houses.   The idea of buying 2nd hand, even repairing or renovating is distasteful and not just through laziness.  Old houses may have resident "pee" or ghosts of former inhabitants and deceased persons and 2nd hand vehicles 'might' be unsafe or fail on long journeys .... I've heard some funny stories!

New cars and houses have been far too easy to acquire.  Extremely low or ZERO % interest, poor credit reporting and almost no financial record to support borrowings has lead to increased household debt.  I've seen cars handed back to banks/finance co's, or repossessed, and replaced with yet another new vehicle shortly after ... via different company and with a borrowed deposit. 

[palooka]

9 hours ago, BIGGLES said:

You need food, and a roof over your head. The rest is aspirational.

You left out Thai Whiskey, some need this more than food and a roof.

[HiuMak]

9 hours ago, BIGGLES said:

They really are going to have to treat all foreigners, especially retirees with a whole load more respect.

Hopefully it maybe similar to that shown 35 years ago. Difference then of course, was they knew that they had nothing and had not experienced having something. 

Even in this climate, fundamentally the Thai's are lazy (the men that is). Consequently, you see foreign labour encouraged to come and work in the country, as the Thai's will not work.

When you're dirt poor, you don't need a car, pick-up, mobile phone etc. You need food, and a roof over your head. The rest is aspirational. Nothing wrong with aspirations, just get off your arse and make it happen. Alternatively, cut your cloth accordingly. 

We westerners must remember that this is a third world country, and not pay for anything as if it is first world, otherwise we do ourselves no favours.

Most Thais spend more than they can afford.

I see many instance of excessive food wastage where they will order loads of dishes on the table and hardly finish them. 

[Cabra]

With global recession fears and inflation everywhere at record levels, Thailand's fortunes will be dire for at least 18 months. At best. 

[Prosaap]

Its easy to spend more than you have, mostly to show off to the neighbors what they have. Maybe the interest for a car is 0%, but loaning cash money is not. I see lady on the bar buy shirts, maybe only 100 bath, but they pay 10 days 20 bath. They have the 100 but want to spend that on a lottery ticket even in the lockdown when they got no work. There was always money for a ticket. Some even borrow money for a ticket and the girl where she borrow the money from, understand that she have to buy a ticket. They have weird ideas explaining it all by saying its thai style   

Edited July 11, 2022 by Smithydog
Inserted punctuation to improve read

[Davelee]

Always perplexed me when I would see a slew of imported cars downstairs in the car park of a very simple studio apartment building.  I swear I thought I was in sathorn or something but no, outskirts of Bangkok 

 

[dmacarelli]

19 hours ago, BIGGLES said:

They really are going to have to treat all foreigners, especially retirees with a whole load more respect.

Hopefully it maybe similar to that shown 35 years ago. Difference then of course, was they knew that they had nothing and had not experienced having something. 

Even in this climate, fundamentally the Thai's are lazy (the men that is). Consequently, you see foreign labour encouraged to come and work in the country, as the Thai's will not work.

When you're dirt poor, you don't need a car, pick-up, mobile phone etc. You need food, and a roof over your head. The rest is aspirational. Nothing wrong with aspirations, just get off your arse and make it happen. Alternatively, cut your cloth accordingly. 

We westerners must remember that this is a third world country, and not pay for anything as if it is first world, otherwise we do ourselves no favours.

True. This nonsense I hear about Thailand being 1st world is just that. It is 3rd world (developing nation, or whatever the PC term of the moment is) on so many levels. Only parts of Bangkok seem truly modern and advanced. Just look at the rails. Just look at the crazy number of trucks of all sizes clogging the highways. Just look at the inability or unwillingness to even try to tackle the air quality and environmental issues. 

I happen to like the 3rd world and all the advantages that come with living within it. However it is disengenuous to call it by any other description. 

[oldschooler]

11 hours ago, yselmike said:

The ghost of Norman Tebbit !

“On yer bike”  to find work ! Normo Tebbs ! 

Yosser Hughes (also from 80s) Boys from the Black Stuff … “ Gissa Job!!!”

[Marc26]

On 7/10/2022 at 8:03 AM, BIGGLES said:

They really are going to have to treat all foreigners, especially retirees with a whole load more respect.

Hopefully it maybe similar to that shown 35 years ago. Difference then of course, was they knew that they had nothing and had not experienced having something. 

Even in this climate, fundamentally the Thai's are lazy (the men that is). Consequently, you see foreign labour encouraged to come and work in the country, as the Thai's will not work.

When you're dirt poor, you don't need a car, pick-up, mobile phone etc. You need food, and a roof over your head. The rest is aspirational. Nothing wrong with aspirations, just get off your arse and make it happen. Alternatively, cut your cloth accordingly. 

We westerners must remember that this is a third world country, and not pay for anything as if it is first world, otherwise we do ourselves no favours.

I am not treated special anymore like I was 35 years ago!

 

And I demand it go back to how it used be

I demand they make me feel special!!................said every old white guy in Thailand

[Marc26]

8 hours ago, dmacarelli said:

True. This nonsense I hear about Thailand being 1st world is just that. It is 3rd world (developing nation, or whatever the PC term of the moment is) on so many levels. Only parts of Bangkok seem truly modern and advanced. Just look at the rails. Just look at the crazy number of trucks of all sizes clogging the highways. Just look at the inability or unwillingness to even try to tackle the air quality and environmental issues. 

I happen to like the 3rd world and all the advantages that come with living within it. However it is disengenuous to call it by any other description. 

How much have you travelled?

As KR pointed out, Thailand is way more developed than most of it's neighbors

 

It's more developed than 80% of Latin America

[Prosaap]

Be They are not developing because they don’t want .they have no intrest in what happen and how the world thinks and work they think they are the smartest people on  earth with no intrest to learn from mistake or any thing else they are dumb by choice and its design by that the elite not want them smart and it looks like they happy to  be obedient by not showing intrest to learn or care 

[astro]

9 hours ago, dmacarelli said:

I happen to like the 3rd world and all the advantages that come with living within it. However it is disengenuous to call it by any other description. 

"3rd world" is an inaccurate, outdated, derogatory term.

Thailand has been a N.I.C. (Newly Industrialised Country) for more than 20 years.

[Prosaap]

Well i sorry its not PC but its not wrong also 

[Marvin]

I’m wondering what provinces the survey was taken? Was it sporadic? Was it in the city? Was it in the highly expensive tourist areas? Was it in the rural areas? I don’t think this pole can cover the whole country, because when I was there there were people doing just fine in the well known places. The rural country areas I could see the poverty level. Geographical areas plays a huge factor in these numbers. I’m really having a hard time believing the numbers and that this percentage makes up for the whole country. 

Thank You
Marvin
 

[Marc26]

15 hours ago, Prosaap said:

Be They are not developing because they don’t want .they have no intrest in what happen and how the world thinks and work they think they are the smartest people on  earth with no intrest to learn from mistake or any thing else they are dumb by choice and its design by that the elite not want them smart and it looks like they happy to  be obedient by not showing intrest to learn or care 

It's utterly bizarre to me that you would want to have anything to do with Thailand with such a negative view of the place 

 

Yet, here you are, on a Thai chat forum

 

Your post says way more about you than anything about Thai people

[KaptainRob]

5 hours ago, Marvin said:

I’m wondering what provinces the survey was taken? Was it sporadic? Was it in the city? Was it in the highly expensive tourist areas? Was it in the rural areas? I don’t think this pole can cover the whole country, because when I was there there were people doing just fine in the well known places. The rural country areas I could see the poverty level. Geographical areas plays a huge factor in these numbers. I’m really having a hard time believing the numbers and that this percentage makes up for the whole country. 

Thank You
Marvin
 

Polls (not poles) actually mean very little though anyone who has lived in Thailand for a reasonable period will know these findings are close to being accurate.

'Poverty' is not a term one should use for rural Thai's.  They enjoy a simple lifestyle that many Westerners had 50 or 100 years ago.  Work the land and eat well, maybe sell surplus grains etc and buy something new.  Money in a Bank almost unheard of, ATM's used for transfers, often cash between family.  TV News means little and often ignored, as it should be.  Enjoy a good Indian/Buddha movie or Thai Soapie ... the good life!

[Marc26]

57 minutes ago, KaptainRob said:

 

'Poverty' is not a term one should use for rural Thai's.  They enjoy a simple lifestyle that many Westerners had 50 or 100 years ago.  Work the land and eat well, maybe sell surplus grains etc and buy something new.  Money in a Bank almost unheard of, ATM's used for transfers, often cash between family.  TV News means little and often ignored, as it should be.  Enjoy a good Indian/Buddha movie or Thai Soapie ... the good life!

I don't disagree with you entirely and I get what you are saying

 

But when you just have enough for food and money is a constant worry(and it is with many of them)

That would be poverty

But I think our picture of poverty is squalor............which doesn't match rural Thailand

 

 

[KaptainRob]

9 hours ago, Marc26 said:

But I think our picture of poverty is squalor............which doesn't match rural Thailand

Exactly.   One might describe it as 'happily enjoying an impoverished lifestyle' ... And the majority do live hand to mouth. Unfortunately I see many younger ones in our Isaan village are now falling prey to drugs.