BANGKOK, 4 April 2014 – The Central Bank says the Thai economy is affected by the prolonged political stalemate, impairing confidence among domestic consumers.
BoT Spokeswoman Roong Mallikamas says if the political uncertainty dragged on and a new government could not be formed within the first half of this year, then the Thai economy would grow lower than the BoT’s projection of 2.7 percent. Should this event transpire, then it would weaken consumer confidence and postpone government disbursements for mega projects, which stimulate domestic investments and the tourism industry.
Ms. Roong said that the inflation rate in March bounced back to 2.1 percent from 1.9 percent in the previous month, relieving concerns in many sectors.
According to the BoT spokeswoman, some of the factors that contribute to rising inflation include the LPG price hike and increasing prices of ready-to-eat meals. However, she assured that the price hike would not decrease the purchasing power of consumers.
The BoT believes that the inflation rate in 2014 will swing in the range of 0.5 to 3 percent.
