Analysts upbeat on Thai growth outlook

Thailand’s economic growth is expected to accelerate in the final nine months of this year, even as the global economy teeters near a recession, thanks partly to a lift following the May 14 election, analysts say.

First-quarter GDP growth of 2.7% year-on-year beat the consensus forecast of 2.3% and accelerated from 1.4% growth in the fourth quarter last year as external demand improved, reflected by exports and a strong recovery of the tourism sector, according to BMI, a unit of Fitch Group.

In seasonally adjusted terms, the economy grew 1.9% quarter-on-quarter in the first three months of 2023, which is a sharp improvement from the 1.1% quarter-on-quarter contraction recorded in the final quarter of 2022, BMI noted.

Export growth rose to a 3% annualised increase in the first quarter, reversing the 0.7% year-on-year decline three months earlier, indicative of a…