Thailand’s fiscal position enjoyed stability in the first half of the 2011 fiscal year, from October 2010 to March 2011, despite impacts from natural disasters both in and outside the country.
Director-General of the Fiscal Policy Office Naris Chaiyasoot said that, during the period, the Government earned almost 784.6 billion baht, an increase of 14.7 percent from about 100.5 billion baht over that of the same period of the 2010 fiscal year.
The increase was a result of continued economic expansion that enabled the Government to gain more earnings from tax collection. As for expenditure, the Government spent almost 1.2 trillion baht during the six-month period, representing a rise of 24 percent over the same period of the last fiscal year.
Meanwhile, the Assistant Governor of the Bank of Thailand, Mr. Paiboon Kittisrikangwan, said that the Thai economy continued to expand well in the first quarter of 2011, supported by domestic and external demands. Corporate credit growth accelerated in line with economic expansion. However, the production and export of automobiles and electronics are likely to slow down as a result of disasters in Japan. Once the supply disruption from Japan is resolved, production will catch up to meet continued domestic and external demand.
The flood situation in southern Thailand is unlikely to have a great impact on the overall Thai economy. While inflationary pressure in Thailand has increased, many countries also experienced greater inflationary pressure on the back of strong economic growth and increased oil and commodity prices.
The Thai economy in 2010 expanded close to 8 percent, its fastest pace since 1995. The rate was one of the highest in Asia, representing a remarkable rebound compared to the negative growth of 2.3 percent during the period before the present administration came to office in late 2008. Thailand’s economic recovery is expected to be a sustained one, with an expected GDP growth of up to 4.5 percent for 2011.
As for Thai exports, they did well last year, exceeding 190 billion US dollars, the highest in Thai history. According to the Department of Export Promotion, Thai exports in the first quarter of 2011 expanded by 28 percent. The Department believes that Thailand will be able to achieve the export growth target of 12 percent this year. Emphasis is placed on the ASEAN market, China, and India, which altogether represent half of the global population. Thailand exports to 250 countries, and its ASEAN market accounts for 22 percent of the country’s international trade, followed by the United States for 11 percent, and the European Union and Japan for 10 percent each.
The Thai economy is now well-placed in terms of having fiscal and monetary policy tools at its disposal to cope with further volatility. | 
