Thai July factory output seen down for 16th month

BANGKOK: Thailand's manufacturing production index (MPI) likely declined for a 16th straight month in July, down 3.0 percent from a year earlier, according to the poll, after June's 6.6 percent drop.

That would reflect still-subdued domestic demand and slow recovery in shipments, many of which are industrial goods.

Customs-cleared data on Wednesday showed exports unexpectedly fell 0.85 percent in July from a year earlier, compared with the forecast of a 4.0 percent increase in a Reuters poll, and against 3.9 percent growth in June.

In January-July, exports, which are equal to more than 60 percent of the economy, fell 0.42 percent from a year earlier.

Thailand is a regional hub and export base for global automakers and a major producer of hard disk drives.