US-China trade war affects sale volumes of motorcycles

BANGKOK, June 17 (TNA) - The Kasikorn Research Center (KResearch) has projected that the ongoing trade war between the United States and China should affect sale volumes of motorcycles in Thailand to a certain extent. According to a latest KReseach report, released on June 16, sale volumes of motorcycles in Thailand should shrink by about 2 per cent year-on-year in 2019, or standing at about 1.76 million units from 1.79 million units last year, due partly to negative impacts from the persistent trade war between the immense Chinese and the US economies. The leading Thai private think tank indicated that the persistent trade war between Washington and Beijing has caused a slowdown in the global economies, including the Thai economy, leading to, among others, a drop in demand for Thailand-made motorcycles. Besides, an oversupply of key farm products on the world market, including rice, tapioca, rubber, oil palm and sugarcane that has caused a drop in Thailand's exports of the farm products, has resulted in a drop in income and the purchasing power of the grassroots in the country, whose demand for motorcycles is normally higher than other groups of consumers. The Bangkok-based KResearch pointed out that a stricter lending policy of banks and other financial institutes, due to a high level of household debts in Thailand, has also caused a drop in sale volumes of motorcycles on the domestic market. (TNA)