Bangkok – According to the Bank of Thailand (BoT), the overall Thai economy is performing well, evidenced by an increase in private consumption in October.
The central bank has reported that private consumption in October surged by 6.5% from 2.5% in the previous month, thanks to an increase in the sales of motor vehicles and other “durable” goods.
The bank also reported an increase in the income of Thai farmers of 3.9%, attributing the hike to agricultural productivity.
As for exports, the sales of Thai products to foreign countries grew 8.4% in October compared to the previous month’s negative 5.5%.
With that said, the tourism sector continued to shrink. In October, the number of Chinese tourists plummeted by 19.8% year-on-year, but the BoT expects the sector to recover soon as the government has been issuing measures to regain the trust of Chinese visitors.
All in all, the central bank expects this year’s economic expansion to be around 4%.
As for next year, the bank predicts that the country’s GDP will grow at a rate of 4.2%, to be driven by private investments, the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) project, and domestic spending which will be triggered by the social welfare card scheme and tax refunds.
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