A work er paints a renovated building in a shopping district in Bangk ok. Thailand’ s Finance Ministr y has ag ain cut its economic growth forecast to 1.4% from 2% made in J uly – the we ake s t growth since 2011. — EPA
BANGKOK: Thailand's cabinet on Tuesday approved soft loans worth 60 billion baht (US$1.72 billion) for lower-income first-home buyers, as it seeks to stimulate a sluggish economy via increased household spending.
"The cabinet meeting today (on Tuesday) approved the programme for lower-income first-home buyers worth 60 billion baht," Thai Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong told Reuters.
South-East Asia's second-largest economy is in a slump amid a global slowdown and a decline in exports.
Thailand wants to make it easier for first-time buyers to buy their own homes, but the country's households are among the most indebted in South-East Asia, and Thai banks are rejecting around half the mortgage applications they receive.
Commercial banks have tightened their grip on lending as the number of non-performing loans has risen.
Earlier this month the finance ministry said applicants for the soft loans must be first-time buyers seeking homes worth not more than 1.5 million baht (US$43,000).
Three banks will provide the loans, Apisak said.
The ruling junta, which took power in a May 2014 coup, has struggled to revitalise the economy.
In October, it approved measures including relaxed home loan rules to help revive the property sector. - Reuters
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