Thailand's Finance Ministry raised its growth forecast for this year citing signs of economic rebound from last year's severe floods.
The ministry now expects growth to range between 5.2 percent and 6.2 percent this year, with a mid-point of 5.7 percent, the Director General of the Fiscal Policy Office Somchai Sujjapongse said. In March, the ministry had forecast 5.5 percent expansion, which was an upgrade to its earlier projection of 5 percent.
The official said the monthly economic report for May revealed improvement in domestic expenditure, export and production. Elsewhere today, data released by the Industrial Ministry showed that Thai industrial production grew 5.5 percent year-on-year in May, which was much better than the 2.2 percent increase forecast by economists.
The Thai economy expanded 0.3 percent in the first quarter, after a flood-related 8.9 percent slump in the final three months of last year. Gross domestic product grew 11 percent quarter-on-quarter.
by RTT Staff Writer
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