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Thailand’s gross domestic product (GDP) saw positive momentum during the 1st quarter of the year, thanks to rising domestic consumption and a boost in tourism revenues.
Thailand’s 1st quarter GDP rose 1.5% year-on-year and 1.1% quarter-on-quarter amid a recovery in the private consumption sector of 6.9%, while tourism saw a 24.8% rise year-on-year, the National Economic & Social Development Council (NESDC) announced this morning.
The NESDC said it was also lowering the projected GDP growth for 2024 to 2-3% from the earlier projection of 2.2-3.2% amid uncertainties in global trade. However, the NESDC added that the disbursement of nearly 500 billion Baht in ‘Digital Wallet’ during the 4th quarter could help the projected 2.5% GDP growth see an additional 0.25% boost this year.
“It is unlikely that the entire 500 billion Baht of the Digital Wallet would be used in the 4th quarter; therefore, some boost would happen in Q4, but a bulk of the impact from the scheme is in the quarters ahead,” the NESDC said.
During the 4th quarter of 2023, Thailand’s GDP grew by as much as 1.7%.
Exports, one of the key drivers of economic growth for Thailand, saw a 2% decline during the 1st quarter of this year, and the NESDC said it expects exports in 2024 to rise by as much as 2%, lower than the previous projection of 2.9% amid a possible global slowdown.
The NESDC said that headline inflation is set to be around 0.1% to 1.1% lower than the previous forecast by the Bank of Thailand (BoT), which has an inflation target of 1-3% for the year. Tourism, which has been a key driver for the economy, is set to see as many as 36.5 million tourists arriving in 2024, up from 35 million projected earlier. As of May 12, Thailand had seen as many as 13.16 million tourists for 2024. This projection is still below the nearly 40 million tourists Thailand saw in 2019.