Thai Recovery Seen Fragile

Thailand’s private consumption and investment dropped in April from the previous month while exports increased, central bank indexes showed on Wednesday, suggesting the economic recovery was fragile, Reuters reported. The Bank of Thailand’s private consumption index for April fell 0.3% from the previous month, when it had risen 0.1%. April’s index for private investment dipped 0.1% from March, when it had fallen 1.2%. The BOT said there was a current account surplus of $3.13 billion in April, after March’s $2.58 billion surplus. Exports, based on financial settlements, grew 5.9% in April from a year earlier after March’s 10.8% jump, the central bank said. A recovery in exports, a traditional key growth driver, is a boost to Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, whose growth still lags regional peers. The central bank has forecast 3.4% economic growth this year, with exports rising 2.2%. The economy expanded 3.2% last year.