Thai shippers’ council expects 8-pct fall in Q1 exports

BANGKOK, March 7– Thailand’s export value is expected to shrink 8 percent in the first quarter of 2023 from a year earlier, weighed down by slowing global demand, the country’s shippers’ council said on Tuesday. The forecast, downgraded from a projected 3.7- percent decline the Thai National Shippers’ Council made a month ago, came after a more-than-expected drop…

BANGKOK, March 7 (Xinhua) — Thailand’s export value is expected to shrink 8 percent in the first quarter of 2023 from a year earlier, weighed down by slowing global demand, the country’s shippers’ council said on Tuesday.

The forecast, downgraded from a projected 3.7-percent decline the Thai National Shippers’ Council (TNSC) made a month ago, came after a more-than-expected drop in Thailand’s exports in January.

The Southeast Asian country’s exports, a key driver of growth, fell for a fourth straight month in January, down 4.5 percent year on year to 20.24 billion U.S. dollars, as global demand slowed. The reading was worse than a market expectation of a 1-percent fall.

The global economy remained highly uncertain, leading to a potential slowdown in the country’s manufacturing sector, while the service and tourism sectors are expected to help drive the economic recovery, TNSC said in a written statement on Tuesday.

It urged the government to regulate electricity tariffs in the next revision, as it is one of the main production costs that impact Thai businesses’ competitiveness. Enditem