Thai baht appreciation slows down inflation

BANGKOK, May 1 (TNA) - Inflation ran slower in Thailand in April as baht appreciation cut energy prices and kept product prices from significantly rising. The Commerce Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Vatchari Vimooktayon said that the consumer price index in April this year rose by 2.42% year-on-year. Inflation ran slower compared with 2.69% in March this year and 2.92% in the first four months of this year. However, she said, the slower inflation reflected growing consumption. Ms Vatchari pointed out that the decrease in the global oil price and baht appreciation reduced energy prices in Thailand. That helped limit the increase in product prices as the government continued to control the prices of products and energy. According to the senior official, the Commerce Ministry plans to keep inflation at 2.8-3.4% throughout this year. (TNA)