Sharp contraction in November
Thailand's economy contracted in November 2011 battered heavily by the historic floods in decades, according to the Bank of Thailand.
Mathee Supapongse, senior director of the central bank, said at a press conference today that the historic floods hit all economic sectors in the month.
The value of agricultural sector contracted by 7.2 per cent year-on-year as rice fields in the central region were flooded. The manufacturing sector continued to shrink in almost all segments due to a temporary shutdown of production in flooded areas, as well as supply-chain disruptions and disrupted transportation.
The Manufacturing Production Index contracted 48.6 per cent on year, particularly in hard disk drive, automobile, integrated circuit and parts, and electrical appliance industries.
Private consumption index contracted across almost all indicators by 1.6 per cent.
The Fiscal Policy Office expected the economy to contract 5 per cent in the fourth quarter of this year, which will pull down the full-year growth rate to 1.1 per cent.
