Thailand's 2011 GDP growth revised down

BANGKOK, December 15 (TNA) - Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) for 2011 has been revised down to 1.4 per cent, the lowest over the past two years, from 3.6 per cent projected earlier in October, due to impacts of the country's flooding crisis over the past couple of months. Thanawat Polvichai, Director of Bangkok-based University of Thai Chamber of Commerce’s Economic and Business Forecasting Center, acknowledged Thursday that Thailand's massive floods this year have caused a total damage worth about 350 billion baht to the national economy and a 3.7 per cent year-on-year contraction to the country's GDP in the fourth quarter, especially in the industrial sector which tumbled 10.4 percent. Thanawat said Thailand’s exports in the fourth quarter fell 5.5 per cent year-on-year; while consumption slipped 2 per cent and people’s confidence declined to the lowest level in a decade. According to the senior economist, Thailand's GDP growth in 2012, meanwhile, has been revised up to 4.7 per cent from 4.3 per cent projected earlier, boosted by a 500 billion-baht-national rehabilitation fund spent by the government and the private sector. The leading Thai economist assessed that the national economy should start recovering in the second half of 2012 to around 5-7 per cent, as major industrial plants would resume production and exports; while people’s purchasing power would also be increasing. (TNA)