The shutdown of Suvarnabhumi Airport by anti-Government PAD protesters is scaring away foreign investors, already causing billions of baht worth of damage to the property sector, according to Patima Jeerapaet, managing director of Colliers International (Thailand).
"It is worse than the Phuket International Airport blockade [in September]. The overall situation is very bad. We just got cancellations from potential customers from Eastern Europe who had planned to fly to Bangkok," said Patima.
"If the situation does not improve, pending property deals worth around one billion baht in the final stages will definitely vanish. Investors who are waiting and seeing or freezing their investment will absolutely cancel.”
The escalation of the standoff between the PAD, the Government and the army chief Gen. Anupong comes at the worst possible time for the Thai economy; November should mark the beginning of the high season for tourism arrivals and property sales, but with some hotels now reporting occupancy rates of only 20-30 percent, forecasts for the coming months are bleak.
"This was inappropriate, such action damages the country´s image so badly and it costs Thailand investment, particularly in tourism and logistics," said Santi Vilassakdanont, chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI).
He said the anti-government People´s Alliance for Democracy needed to realise that its action has damaged the country´s economy vastly, with tourism threatened and cargo disruptions taking a huge toll.
"We are close to losing the opportunity to be a regional logistic hub," he said.
Judy Benn, executive director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Thailand, said that its members expressed serious concern over the impact on their daily operations.
"Many of our companies use Thailand as a regional hub and meeting centre and many of them are now dealing with visit cancellations and visitors stranded here. This is proving very disruptive to their daily business and many companies have deep concerns about the impact on upcoming visits," Ms Benn said.
