Tourists in Bangkok, Thailand. (Photo: AFP/VNA) Bangkok (VNA) - The overall economic outlook for Thailand this year remains positive, but inflation, global tensions, increasing interest rates and debt continue to pose a threat to the country's growth, Thailand’s National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) has said.
Thai gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of this year rose 2.5% year on year, compared with a 2.3% expansion in the previous quarter, helping the economy grow by 2.4% in the first half of 2022, it said.
The expansion of private consumption expenditure and service exports, as well as the recovery of the tourism industry following the easing of COVID-19 control measures, has enabled economic activities and spending to return to normal levels, with support from consumption stimulus measures.
However, there are some geopolitical risk factors that need to be considered for Thailand’s economic outlook in the last six months of this year, according to The Nation newspaper.
NESDC Secretary-General Danucha Pitchayanun said that the prolonging Russia-Ukraine crisis, the risk of a COVID-19 pandemic and monkeypox, interest rate hikes, and China's economic slowdown are the main factors to be closely monitored.
The council also suggested that the government monitor and accommodate market mechanisms to bring domestic prices in line with input costs, support agricultural production and farmers' income, resolve retail debt in the face of rising interest rates, maintain momentum in the export sector, catalyse the recovery in tourism and related service sectors, and prepare for global economic and financial market volatility.
Besides, supportive policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are needed to sustain Thailand's long-term growth.
The NESDC forecast that the Thai economy will grow by 2.7 to 3.2% in 2022, mainly thanks to increased domestic demand, the recovery of the tourism sector, and the continued expansion of goods exports./.
