Economic impacts start in October
Economic indicators suggest severe contraction in October, according to the Finance Ministry.
Value-added-tax collections expanded only 11.3 per cent year on year last month, down from 13.3 per cent in the previous month, said Somchai Sujjapongse, director-general of the Fiscal Policy office.
Car sales plunged by 38.8 per cent compared with an expansion of 29.6 per cent in the month before. Sales of commercial vehicles also plummeted by 41.8 per cent, suggesting a contraction in private investment.
Preliminary data show that the manufacturing production index tanked by 34.5 per cent, while exports edged up only 0.3 per cent year on year.
Floods that inundated 7 industrial estate hit the manufacturing sector hard and caused supply-chain disruptions to the electronics and automotive industries worldwide. World Bank today estimated loss of over Bt1 trillion to the business sector.
Toyota Motor Corp earlier said it lost about 190,000 units of production globally from Oct 10 through Nov 19 because of the floods in Thailand. About 30 electrical parts are still in critical supply, the company said.
