The business community was divided yesterday over the effects of the alleged assassination plot against caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Satit Chanchaokul, secretary-general of the Board of Investment, said the incident would not affect investors' decisions, although it would cause some concern.

Businesses would still go on producing and competing as they had been, while export orders remain high, he said. However, the concern of the business sector would largely depend on whether the political tension spilled over.

Kasikornbank president Prasarn Trairatvorakul said the political situation had affected economic growth directly and indirectly.

The investment climate and domestic spending have been affected and political tension is likely to intensify before the general election, he said.

Society has been largely divided, which had affected foreign investors' confidence in Thailand. Some foreign investors had said they might decide to invest instead in neighbouring countries, particularly Vietnam.

Prasert Bunsumpun, president of PTT Plc, said the impact of yesterday's incident had already affected his company's stock prices.

PTT Plc closed yesterday at Bt242, unchanged from the previous day, while PTT Exploration and Production Plc closed at Bt111, down Bt5, and PTT Chemical Plc closed at Bt84, down Bt4.

Meanwhile, Bank of Thailand Governor MR Pridiyathorn Devakula said yesterday in a dinner talk entitled "Solutions for Thai Business in a Turbulent Economic Era" that gross domestic product (GDP) in 2007 is likely to grow more than 4.5 per cent.

He said the economy would be boosted by the government's acceleration of budget disbursement in the third quarter of 2007 and spending at the start of the 2008 fiscal year in the fourth quarter next year.

Anoma Srisukkasem,

Somruedi Banchongduang

The Nation