Thai coup leader sets out economic priorities: rice and budget

[World News]

By Aukkarapon Niyomyat BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's ruling military laid out its economic priorities on Sunday, telling financial officials from the public and private sectors that it wanted to quickly pay farmers money owed under a failed subsidy scheme and work out a budget for 2015. If there is something wrong, we have to find quick solutions," Thawatchai Yongkittikul, secretary general of the Thai Bankers' Association, told reporters, citing coup leader General Prayuth Chan-ocha, who summoned up to 60 officials to the meeting. Many countries have issued travel warnings for Thailand, which was already expecting the lowest number of foreign visitors in five years in 2014. On top of that, a huge problem for the last government of Yingluck Shinawatra was a failed rice-subsidy scheme, a major policy in a populist electoral platform that brought her to power in 2011.

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