Thailand’s exports forecast to drop 10 percent in 2020

Thailand’s exports are expected to drop 10 percent this year, deeper than the previous forecast of 8 percent, according to the Thai National Shippers' Council (TNSC).

The TNSC pointed to factors such as the strengthening baht and the impact of the COVID-19 on the global economy including Thailand’s trade partners and disrupted logistics systems.

The only positive factor is the increasing export of agricultural products, food and medical supplies.

According to data released on July 7, Thailand’s exports in May dropped 22.5 percent to 16.27 billion USD, while the figure for the January-May period was down 3.71 percent to 97.89 billion USD.

The central bank of Thailand (BoT) recently said the baht strength could affect an economic recovery and it would assess the necessity of implementing more steps to curb it.

The BoT predicted that Thailand’s economy would contract by a record 8.1 percent this year, while a report by Krungsri bank’s research team said the Thai GDP may shrink by as much as 10.3 percent this year./. 

VNA