Thailand sees slow economic recovery in last December

The pace of Thailand's economic recovery remained slow in December 2014, with the main drivers being merchandise exports, the tourism sector and government spending, the Bank of Thailand (BOT), or the central bank, said Friday.

Merchandise exports recovered gradually, and foreign orders continued to increase mainly from the United States in line with its economic improvement, according to a BOT statement on economic conditions for December.

Nevertheless, soft demand from China as well as declining prices of several oil-related goods such as petroleum, rubber, and chemical products caused the value of exports in 2014 to decline slightly, it added.

The tourism sector continued to expand as Asian tourists, particularly those from China and Malaysia, increased substantially during the New Year celebration given their lessening concerns on the political situation, the bank highlighted.

The increase in these groups of tourists helped offset a drop in the number of tourist arrivals from other countries, especially Russia and Japan, which were hurt by their economic slowdowns and the depreciation of the Russian Ruble and the Japanese Yen, it said.

Fiscal spending rose in December on the back of expedited disbursement on both capital expenditure, particularly for irrigation and transportation, and purchases of goods and services, the statement said, adding government revenue expanded on account of the 3G license auction and the increase in excise tax rate on diesel.

In addition, despite lower cost of living and production cost benefits from falling oil prices, private spending softened as consumers remained cautious and businesses awaited economic recovery and clarity on government's infrastructure investment, the bank indicated.

On the stability front, the decline in global oil prices resulted in falling inflation and the third consecutive month of current account surplus, it said. Endi