Thailand GDP Growth Falters in Q4, Missing Analyst Estimates
Thailand's economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2023 fell short of economists' expectations, due to a lackluster global demand for exports. The Southeast Asian nation's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 1.7% compared to the same period the previous year, showing improvement from the third quarter's growth of 1.4%, as reported by the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council.
Despite exports and private consumption helping to offset a decline in government expenditure, the result fell well below the median forecast of 2.65% growth. Furthermore, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the economy contracted by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, compared to 0.6% growth in the previous quarter.
For the entire year, Thailand's economic growth slowed to 1.9%, following a 2.5% expansion in 2022. Officials from the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council anticipate the economy to grow between 2.2% and 3.2% in 2024.
Private consumption, which constitutes approximately half of Thailand's GDP, experienced a slight deceleration, rising by 7.4% year-on-year in the fourth quarter. This increase marked a decline from the 7.9% growth recorded in the previous quarter.
Analyst comment
The news can be evaluated as negative. Despite an improvement in economic growth in the fourth quarter, it fell short of economists’ forecasts. The global demand for exports remained lackluster. The market is likely to face challenges due to the contraction in government expenditure and lower than expected growth.
