Omicron key risk to Thailand’s economic recovery

Thailand’s outbreak of the Omicron coronavirus variant could have a bigger impact than expected on an economic recovery, according to the Bank of Thailand latest last policy meeting.

According to the Ministry of Public Health, the country is entering a new wave of COVID-19 infections, following the long New Year holidays, with over 2,000 cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus detected in Thailand to date

Thus the Omicron outbreak could have more widespread, severe, and prolonged effects than the baseline projection, depending on the severity of the situation and the strictness of containment measures.

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Looking ahead, global financial markets would remain highly volatile according to Bank of Thailand given:

(1) the risk that central banks could adopt a faster pace of monetary policy normalization to curb high inflation,

(2) the spread of Omicron that could hamper the global economic recovery

(3) the risk arising from China’s domestic regulations and international policies which could affect the global economic outlook and energy prices.

Thai Economy to grow 3.4% in 2022

The Thai economy would grow 0.9 percent in 2021 and would continue to expand 3.4 and
4.7 percent in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Growth projection would be driven by domestic spending, a gradual improvement in foreign tourist figures, as well as the recovery in various business sectors in line with economic activities.