Thai baht likely to hover around 35.5-37.5 in 2017

BANGKOK, April 3 (TNA) - The Ministry of Commerce has maintained earlier projections that the Thai economy should grow by 3-4 per cent year-on-year in 2017, while foreseeing that the Thai baht should hover around 35.5-37.5 a US dollar. Pimchanok Wonkorporn, Deputy Director-General of the ministry's Trade Policy and Strategy Bureau, told journalists of the updated assessment on Monday. Besides, Pimchanok reported that Thailand's inflation in March rose 0.76 per cent year-on-year, a slower pace, due to lower oil and food prices. The senior official said the country's inflation in the first quarter of this year, on the other hand, increased 1.25 per cent. According to the senior official, her ministry has, thus, revised its 2017 inflation projection to 1.5–2 per cent, from the earlier projection of 1.5-2.2 per cent, based on the assumption that the Dubai crude oil price should hover around 50-60 US dollars per barrel this year. (TNA)