Thailand's export forecast to increase 12 percent in 2021

Bangkok (VNA) - Thailand's exports are expected to rise 12 percent this year thanks to the global economic recovery and a return of economic activities after a widened coverage of vaccinations among major trading partners, according to the Thai National Shippers' Council (TNSC).

The TNSC earlier predicted the growth 6-7 percent in May and 3-4 percent in December.

According to TNSC Chairman Chaichan Chareonsuk, the global economy has undergone a strong recovery, especially Thailand's major trading partners such as the United States, China, the European Union (EU) and Japan. The progress in vaccinations also helped build up people's confidence and the resumption of economic activities, he said.

Chaichan said Thailand's export outlook is expected to continue growing in the remaining months of the year boosted by recovering demand in foreign markets after vaccinations against the COVID-19 pandemic have risen. Oil prices are also expected to become stable and higher than last year's level, driven by an increasing demand for oil worldwide, especially in Europe and the US, he added.

However, to achieve the growth of 12 percent this year, Thailand has to fetch an average of 20.85 billion USD a month, he said.

Despite the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, Thai exports are maintaining their growth momentum, surging by 20.2 percent year-on-year in July.

The Commerce Ministry recently reported customs-cleared exports reached a value of 22.65 billion USD, with imports increasing by 45.9 percent to 22.47 billion USD. 

It was the fifth consecutive month of increases thanks to the robust recovery across the globe,  the depreciation of the baht, rising oil prices and export promotions by the ministry and the private sector.

In the January - July period, exports expanded by 16.2 percent to 154.99 billion USD while imports rose by 28.7 percent to 152.36 billion USD.

Chaichan said exporters still fret over risk factors such as high COVID-19 infections in the country, notably in the industrial factories which may affect production capacity.

Other risk factors are relatively high freight rates, container management problems at the ports and shipping delays, according to Chaichan./.