The Industry Ministry reported a year-on-year fall of 6.27% in Thailand’s manufacturing production index for December, attributed to a downturn in car production. This figure was notably steeper than the anticipated 3.2% decrease, according to a Reuters poll. This followed the 4.71% drop in November, rounding out a year in which overall output shrank by 5.11%.
In addition to the decline in automotive manufacturing, December’s fall in output was precipitated by a combination of high household debt, increased borrowing costs, and downgraded economic growth. By the conclusion of the third quarter of last year, household debt in Thailand had reached 90% of the gross domestic product (GDP).
Warawan Chitaroon, the head of the Office of Industrial Economics (OIE), cautioned about the state of the economy in January.
“There are more cautious signs in…
