Infrastructure spending key for 3.5-4.5%, growth: FPO

FPO director-general Krisada Chinavicharana told a seminar yesterday that government spending of more than Bt300 billion to build up infrastructure would be the main boost to economy this year.
In 2014, GDP managed to grow by 0.8-1 per cent thanks to surge in the final quarter of about 3 per cent year on year, according to estimates by the Bank of Thailand and the National Economic and Social Development Board, he said.
State infrastructure spending would kick off in earnest next quarter, he said.
“We believed that the government spending will speed up than the last quarter of last year when the government forced state agency to sing contract to build the infrastructure at cost not over Bt500 million since December 2014, as the investment budget over than Bt500 million has to signed contract before the end of the first quarter of this year. This will speed up the government’s spending inject to boost the country’s economy in the second quarter of this year,” he said.
Meanwhile, tourism appeared to be recovering last quarter, and if that continues, it will also bolster the economy this year. At the same time, the hope-for recovery in the global economy will ensure that Thailand’s export sector does better than last year, he said.
He also forecast that the baht would continue to weaken when the United States increase its policy interest rate this year, while Thailand’s inflation is likely to be less than 2 per cent thanks to the drop in oil prices.
He added that the combination of an improved economy, low interest rates and rising demand would continue the revival of the residential property market that began last quarter. Krisada was speaking at a seminar hosted by the Secondary Mortgage Corporation.