Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong believes the economy will expand at least 3% this year, though the Bank of Thailand was recently alarmed over rising downside risks to growth. Growth should not be lower than 3% in 2016 as a number of economic readings, including imports of capital goods, improved, and state investment in big-ticket infrastructure projects and budget disbursement are on track, said Mr Apisak. His comments came after the central bank's Monetary Policy Committee on May 11 flagged concerns about downside risks to growth due to heightening internal risks that could derail private consumption and investment.
According to Fiscal Policy Office (FPO) data, capital goods imports in March expanded 6.5% over the same period last year, compared with February's 11.6% contraction. Stripping out imports of aeroplanes ships and trains, capital goods imports in March still grew 3.3% year-on-year, while imports fell 8.3% in February.