BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s economy is expected to grow 2.5% to 3.0% this year, unchanged from a previous forecast, a leading joint business group said on Wednesday.
Tourism revenue will be lower than expected because Thailand is expected to receive only 28 million foreign arrivals this year, down from an earlier forecast of 30 million, said the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking, which includes representatives from those sectors.
The economy is expected to grow 2.8% to 3.3% next year. If the government’s plan to give away 500 billion baht ($14.23 billion) to Thais via a digital wallet is successful, that would add an additional 1.0% to 1.5% in GDP growth, the group said.
Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy grew 1.5% in the July-September quarter from a year earlier, the slowest this year, due to declining exports and government spending.
($1 = 35.1400 baht)
(Reporting by Kitiphong Thaichareon, Chayut Setboonsarng and Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor)
