BANGKOK, 21 May 2015 – Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs MR Pridiyathorn Devakula has set high hopes that the currently weak baht will help stimulate exports and lead to a higher-than-expected economic growth.
MR Pridiyathorn lauded the Bank of Thailand for its success in bringing down the value of the Thai baht through its issuance of various measures. He said the baht has depreciated 5 percent since the beginning of the year which is greatly beneficial for the Thai export sector. The deputy premier noted that it will take three months for the expected improvements in export figures to be evident, pending goods delivery.
According to MR Pridiyathorn, the Thai economy this year could grow beyond the 3-percent projection to as high as 4 percent if exports to the Chinese and Japanese markets begin to see positive growths again.
The deputy premier also deemed the fact that the Thai economy in the first quarter managed to expand 3 percent despite the export contraction of 4.3 percent as a sign of improvements in other economic factors, such as tourism and public and private investment.
