Syria's woes feared to affect world oil prices, Thai economy

BANGKOK, September 9 (TNA) - The private sector has voiced concerns that Syria's ongoing political problems may affect world oil prices and even the Thai economy. Sunthorn Arunanondchai, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Property Development Business Group at Charoen Pokphand Group (CP), cautioned on Monday if the United States striked Syria, global oil prices should rise to reach 140 US dollars per barrel. Sunthorn assessed that the Thai economy should, however, keep growing in the rest of this year, thanks to the strong fundamentals of the Thai economy. Sunthorn predicted that the national economy should expand by 3.8-4 per cent on the condition that there would not be any violent incident. The CP executive urged the Thai government to work for long-term economic expansion, rather than short-term one and to manage its budget properly, while further boosting productivity, instead of spending lavishly. The CP executive also suggested that the Thai government ensure political stability to support domestic tourism, now a main source of national income. Sompop Manarungsan, President of Panyapiwat Institute of Management, projected, meanwhile, that the Thai economy should grow by 3.5 per cent this year. Sompop foresaw if the United States striked Syria, the problem could expand to Iran and affect global oil transport costs. (TNA)