BANGKOK, 23 March 2011 (NNT) – The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) has voiced its confidence that the twin catastrophes and their aftermaths in Japan would not affect Thai industries much.
FTI Chairperson Payungsak Chartsutipol stated that he had met with representatives of the auto, electric and food industries in Thailand, and the meeting evaluated that the situation in Japan would not affect the Thai industry much, but the situation must be monitored for another few weeks.
Mr Payungsak admitted that Thai entrepreneurs, like those in the auto industry, might have to delay their production in the short-term while food factories might have to cut down working hours for a period of time.
The chairperson however noted that demand would be restored once the situation in Japan has returned to normalcy. He added that Thai people who have made purchase orders for new cars might have to wait longer because the delivery of auto parts from Japan might be delayed. However, from Mr Payungsak’s own observation, the purchasing orders for new cars have not yet declined.
Mr Payungsak projected that the Thai economy in general, especially the export sector would be improving in the second and third quarters; nonetheless, apart from the situation in Japan, the unrest in Libya is another factor that must be monitored.
