Thailand’s economic growth forecast revised down hinh anh 1A COVID-19 testing venue in Bangkok, Thailand (Photo: VNA)
Bangkok (VNA) – The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry, and Banking (JSCCIB) of Thailand has decided to lower the national economic growth forecast for the year to 0 - 1.5 percent from the earlier projection of 0.5 - 2.0 percent, due to a prolonged third wave of COVID-19 infections.

Chair of the Thai Bankers Association (TBA) Payong Srivanich said the prolonged outbreak and spread of the Delta variant had led to stringent measures by the government to contain the outbreak. The stronger measures have impacted economic activities, employment and labourers’ income.

In addition, travel restrictions and quarantine measures will significantly impact domestic tourism in the third quarter of this year, as well as the country’s reopening.

Meanwhile, the improvement of Thai exports, in line with global economic recovery, is the only engine supporting the country’s economic growth this year.

JSCCIB has revised up its export growth forecast to 8-10 percent this year, up from 5-7 percent previously. However, the Thai economy still needs both fiscal and monetary policies to support growth.

Recently, the Bank of Thailand (BoT) slashed the country’s economic growth forecast for this year to 1.8 percent from an earlier projection of 3 percent due to low foreign tourist arrival estimates and low domestic demand due to the third wave of COVID-19.

On July 8, Thailand reported 7,058 new COVID-19 infections, raising the total figure to 308,230. The country also logged 75 deaths on the day, setting a record high of daily fatalities since COVID-19 broke out./.
VNA