Thai Infrastructure Fund planned

The Thai finance ministry will propose a stock exchange -listed Infrastructure Fund to mobilise public funds to invest in infrastructure projects now that many industrial estates have been devastated by flooding, Finance Minister Thirachai Phuvanatnaranarubala said.

The proposal would be tabled for the cabinet to consider in one to two weeks.

The fund, if approved, would be listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand. There would be incentives for investors to be exempted from dividends tax. The size of the fund had not yet been fixed, pending consultations with agencies concerned, he said.

Meanwhile, a 500-million-baht fund to help flood victims was set up today. The SET would contribute 250 million baht to the fund and the rest would be from associations such as the Thai Listed Companies Association, and Association of Investment Management Companies.

Mr Thirachai said the 250 million baht contributed by SET would be used to buy water pumps for industrial estates devastated by flooding and build floodwalls so that they could be quickly pumped out and return to operations.

The Finance Ministry would submit a proposal for the prime minister to issue a regulation to require all industrial estates to build concrete flood prevention walls higher than this year's water level.

Insurance companies would be asked to pay claims by companies in the industrial estates hit by the current floods, he said.