NESDB:Thai economy should now grow 5.5% this year

BANGKOK, November 19 (TNA) - The National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) says that Thailand's gross domestic product (GDP) should now grow by 5.5 per cent on average this year and by a similar increment next year. NESDB Secretary-General Arkhom Termpittayapaisith reported on Monday that the Thai economy expanded by 3 per cent in the third quarter of this year, compared with its 0.4 per cent increment in the first quarter and 4.4 per cent in the second quarter. Arkhom acknowledged that domestic consumption expanded by 6.5 per cent and drove the national economy in the July-September 2012 period, particularly through rising household consumption and tax incentives in the government's first-car buyer project; while Thailand's overall investment in the third quarter expanded by 15.5 per cent, thanks to recovering private businesses from the country's flooding crisis late last year. According to the NESDB chief, international investors sought promotional privileges from the Thai government for their projects worth over 800 billion baht during the third quarter, with the value of their planned projects soaring by 97 per cent. Besides, the number of international visitors to Thailand is estimated at 5.3 million in the third quarter and is likely to reach 20.5 million throughout this year. The NESDB chief noted that Thai exports declined by 3 per cent in the third quarter due to the global economic slowdown, particularly to such destinations as Europe, the United States and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), although Thai exports rose in other markets, namely Hong Kong by 9.8 per cent, the Middle East by 4.8 per cent and Australia by 23.7 per cent. The NESDB secretary-general projected that the national economy should grow considerably on the year-on-year basis in the fourth quarter of this year due to its very low base in the fourth quarter last year, resulting in the country's GDP growth at about 5.5 per cent on average this year. In 2013, the NESDB expected that the Thai economy should further expand by 4.5-5.5 per cent, Thai exports by 12.2 per cent, household consumption by 4 per cent, overall investment by 8 per cent; while the headline inflation should be at 2.5-3 per cent and the balance of payments surplus should account for 1 per cent of the country's GDP. The government-run think tank cautioned, however, that wages and the global economic situation remain as risk factors for the Thai economy. (TNA)