Thailand
Bangkok: Exports seen up 1% this year – shippers
Thailand’s exports are likely to rise 1% in 2023 and should pick up later in the year, owing to a recovery in China’s economy, the Thai National Shippers’ Council said on Tuesday.
Exports, a key driver of Thai growth, were not as weak as expected in the first quarter and should improve in the remaining months of the year, Chaichan Chareonsuk, chairman of the council, told a news conference.
The group had forecast a 10% year-on-year contraction in exports for the first quarter.
In January-March, exports declined 4.5% from a year earlier, with imports down 0.5% and a trade deficit at $3 billion.
The baht has also performed well and was stable, which should continue to support exports, Mr Chaichan said.
A baht exchange rate of 34-35 per United States dollar is not stronger or weaker compared with the currencies of trading partners and competitors, he added.
The Bank of Thailand (BoT), however, predicted exports would decline 0.7% for the whole of 2023.
Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2561685/thai-exports-seen-up-1-this-year-shippers-group