Pattani markets silent as Ramadan festivities near
The usually bustling trade near the end of the Ramadan month has turned sour in Pattani as sales drop and fewer Thais working in Malaysia return home for celebrations.
In the neighbouring province of Narathiwat, buying and selling has carried on as usual with Hari Raya, the Muslim holiday on June 25 marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, drawing near.
Pattani vendors insisted the unpleasant economic atmosphere is unusual.
Patimo Kolo, who has sold beef at Thepwiwat market in Pattani’s Muang district for more than 10 years, noticed her sales started to slow three years ago.
“Things are even worse this year,” she said, complaining about the sharp drop in revenue. Ms Patimo plans to keep her business, but feels new vendors in the market will not survive.
The market is typically crowded with shoppers buying food, clothes and adornments for Hari Raya celebrations. The dormant atmosphere worries local sellers and is a great disappointment to those travelling long distances from other provinces for the holiday.
Plated gold vendors visiting from Ayutthaya had hoped to rack up some money during the festival, but have been disheartened during the last six days of the Ramadan month.
Gold and cloth shops in Narathiwat province have had better luck. The 100-baht decrease in gold prices yesterday attracted buyers, while imported cloths from Indonesia and Malaysia also recorded sales, said sellers there.
The Malaysian ringgit has been weaker than the baht this year, keeping many Thai workers living in the neighbouring country from returning to celebrate with their families, said local observers. There are nearly 300,000 Thais working in Malaysia and if many of them decide to stay there during the holiday break, Pattani trade will bear the brunt.
Some locals are speculating low rubber prices are causing rubber farmers to spend less, with higher rainfall keeping them from tapping rubber in plantations. The government’s crackdown on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing has also affected some fishermen’s businesses, said locals.
The government continues to push its “triangle economy city model” in the three southernmost provinces. It plans to turn Pattani’s Nong Chick district into a model for economic development, make Narathiwat’s Sungai Kolok district a hub for border trade and shape Yala’s Betong district into a sustainable area.