BANGKOK : Thailand's exports are likely to show a contraction of 10 per cent in the first quarter of this year from a year earlier, bigger than a previous forecast drop of 8 per cent, the country's shippers' council said on Tuesday.
The global economy was slowing and a recovery in China's economy was not as fast as expected, Chaichan Chareonsuk, chairman of the Thai National Shippers' Council, told a news conference.However, the group said the central bank had told them it would closely monitor the baht and ensure it was not too volatile.
The group is forecasting exports, a key driver of Thai economic growth, to rise 1 per cent to 2 per cent this year. Customs-based exports contracted for a fifth straight month in February, by 4.7 per cent from a year earlier, and the commerce ministry predicted shipments would not rebound until the second half of 2023.