Consumers at a shopping mall in Bangkok (Photo: EPA/VNA)Bangkok (NNT/VNA) - Asurvey of members of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) found that confidence inthe Thai economy is at its highest in eight months.
Kalin Sarasin, President of the TCC and theBoard of Trade, revealed that the TCC Confidence Index in August rose to 49.8,up from 48.6 the previous month and the highest since January 2018.
The country’s economic expansion in the second quarter adds to the expected 4.6percent growth for the year. Other positive factors include improvements toagricultural prices in certain areas, continued expansion in the tourism andexport sectors, stabilising interest rates and government investments ininfrastructure.
President of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce,Saowanee Thairungroj, noted that it was the first time that all regions acrossthe country showed overall improvements in their confidence indices, althoughthe sentiment was not well distributed across provinces.
The eastern region posted the highest index value, due toimprovements in the tourism sector, agricultural demand and border trade. TheBangkok Metropolitan Area also benefited from tourism, along with consumerspending.
The Northeast posted the lowest index value of any region, followed by theNorth and Central Plains, due to the high cost of agricultural production andconstant flooding.
However, the TCC is confident that the economy will continueto recover thanks to investment, border trade and consumer spending. Itbelieves the economy this month will continue to grow, after the ban onpolitical activities is lifted.
Saowanee urged the government to boost confidence in tourismthrough standardised safety measures and satisfy unmet labour demand by recruitingforeign workers.-NNT/VNA
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