Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) 2013 growth forecast revised downward!
National Economic and Social Development Board lowers 2013 GDP projection to 4.2-5.2 per cent after 5.3% Q1 growth
Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) forecast is lowered from 4.5-5.5 per cent to 4.2-5.2 per cent due to the disappointing Q1 economic growth of 5.3 per cent, below the previously forecast 6-7 per cent, a senior official said today.
Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, secretary general of the Office of the Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), said Thailand's Q1 economic expansion at 5.3 per cent this year is far below last year’s Q4 growth of 19.1 per cent.
Household spending increased by 4.2 per cent, a sharp drop from last year’s Q4 at 12.4 per cent while last year’s Q4 investment at 22.9 per cent dropped to only 6 per cent in Q1.
The Q1 export volume in dollars increased 4.5 per cent, almost half below the government’s 9 per cent target while the NESDB earlier forecast an 11 per cent growth, he said.
The export volume in baht increased by only 0.5 per cent given the surging Thai currency which has resulted in a Bt181 billion loss, he said, predicting Thailand’s export value to grow at only 7.6 per cent this year, much below the original 11 per cent forecast.
He called on the Bank of Thailand (BoT) to give more emphasis on stabilising the baht than concentrating on inflation.
Q1 inflation remained at 3.1 per cent and it should be around 2.3-3.3 per cent this year.