Having recently marked the end of a year that admittedly could have been better, many people welcomed the brand-new year with an unshakeable thought: “What does 2021 hold?”
Ever since the new strain of the coronavirus, which was first detected in the United Kingdom in the last quarter of 2020, found its way to Asia, many locals believe it is only a matter of time before it spreads to the Kingdom of Thailand and wreaks havoc on public health and the economy.
However, real estate tycoon Andres Pira maintains an optimistic outlook.
Pira, who is the CEO & Founder of the Phuket-based property development company Blue Horizon Developments, acknowledges that the potential effects of the new strain of the coronavirus cannot be discounted. It is, after all, 70% more transmissible than the original strain and therefore, could cause more infections in people. To re-dress the health effects of the new strain, countries would naturally have to keep the travel restrictions that are currently in place intact or tighten them, which would have an impact on Thailand’s tourism-fuelled economy.
At the same time, Pira believes there is hope now that there is a vaccine to fight the virus. Many countries around the world are already securing vaccines to provide to its citizens, and Thailand is no different. The Thai government aims to vaccinate almost half its population this year and up to 70% in 2022, which would be sufficient to achieve herd immunity.
When asked about his predictions about the economy, Pira says there is always light at the end of the tunnel. “If 2020 is anything to go by, Thailand has proven that it can handle a pandemic to the best of its abilities,” says Pira.
“With the vaccines, there are high hopes that the pandemic will be successfully dealt with this year, which will have a positive impact on the Thai as well as the global economy.”
With regards to Phuket’s real estate sector, the lack of tourism has reduced property transactions in Phuket as the island has a significant number of foreign investors.
Moreover, the dwindling economy worldwide has also reduced the purchasing power of investors, leaving them unable to go forward with their investment plans. The lack of sales in the development phase of real estate projects has left property developers in a tight spot as they may have no resources to fund construction and other related activities.
“At Blue Horizon Developments, we are grateful for our investors who share our vision and believe in our
potential. Together, we are looking forward to a better and brighter future for Phuket as a whole. Blue Horizon Developments has secured new global partnerships during the pandemic that will propel our company to new levels of growth and success. We will reveal and update our clients and investors of the exciting news during this first quarter of 2021,” says Pira, who firmly believes that Phuket will recover this year once the roll-out of vaccines successfully takes place.
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