Thai Feb exports seen down 3.24pc y/y, factory output to drop again

23 Mar, 2015

BANGKOK: Thailand's customs-cleared exports probably fell about 3.24 percent in February from a year earlier, while imports and industrial output were also likely to have declined, a Reuters poll showed.

In January, exports fell 3.46 percent on the year. Thai exports, which have long been weak, are equivalent to more than 60 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

Imports were forecast to have fallen 1.0 percent year-on-year in February, a far smaller fall than the 13.33 percent drop posted in January, but still marking a fifth straight month of decline.

Many imported materials are assembled into completed goods and shipped out again.

According to the poll, the manufacturing output index (MPI) is likely to show a fall of 0.25 percent in February, making the 23rd consective month of decline. In January, it fell -1.30 percent.

Copyright Reuters, 2015

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