Exports likely to recover in 2nd quarter
Thailand's shipments will return to positive territory and show continuous growth in the second quarter of the year, faster than expected, as manufacturers have rapidly recovered after the severe floods last year.
Nuntawan Sakuntanaga, director-general at the International Trade Promotion Department, said that exports in the second quarter should post positive growth of at least 5 per cent, which will ensure that the country’s annual exports will achieve the 15-per-cent target.
Thailand’s exports in March have shown positive growth by 0.91 per cent. Shipments would contract by only 1-2 per cent in the first quarter of the year, after exports in the first two months dropped by 2.4 per cent, she explained.
To encourage exports, the department has launched a strategy to focus more on potential new markets.
“Europe’s financial crunch and higher fuel prices are major factors of concern that affect Thai shipments. However, the department will focus more on marketing strategies to promote exports to other markets, which were less impacted by those problems,” said Nuntawan.
After the department shifted its focus on new markets, Thailand’s exports to traditional markets like the United States, the European Union, and Japan has dropped gradually from 50.5 per cent in 1997 to 29.5 per cent at present. Shipments to high-potential markets, mainly in Asean, China, South Asia, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan grew from 36.7 per cent to 50.2 per cent during the same period.
The department will organise 938 activities to promote trade in the country and overseas this year.
Nuntawan added that Thai exports would be impacted by higher labour costs and fuel prices this year, leading to higher production costs. A policy to weaken the baht could slightly reduce the higher cost of production. The department’s study showed that for every extra baht will increase production cost of Thai exporters by 3.3 per cent.
