PM foresees rising Thai exports

BANGKOK, September 7 (TNA) - Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra says she is optimistic that Thai exports will be increasing in the remaining of this year. As global economies have started recovering, especially those in member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Yingluck, who is also Defence Minister, foresaw during her weekly TV and radio programme on Saturday morning that the development should help boost Thai exports and the national economy in the third and fourth quarters of this year. Yingluck assessed that Thailand’s cross-border trade also has an opportunity to grow further. Although this year’s growth in the Thai economy is expected to slow down from last year, Yingluck announced that her government will implement several measures to stimulate the national economy as much as possible. According to the prime minister, her government will also speed up its investment on projects which should be complete within this year to stimulate Thailand's gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2013. The prime minister noted although private investment has slowed down since early this year, the Ministry of Industry is encouraging local private business operators to expand their investment. The government-run National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) last month lowered its forecast on Thailand’s GDP growth this year to 3.8-4.3 per cent, from an earlier projection at 4.2-5.2 per cent. (TNA)