Consumer confidence drops further
Consumer confidence sank to a four-year low last month, battered by oil and political shocks, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC) reported yesterday.
It also said any delay in the general election to November would trim 20 basis points off economic growth."Businessmen are still worried about the uncertain political situation. Delaying the election date will delay the government's projects, which are aimed at stimulating private investment," said Thanawat Polvichai, director of the UTCC Economic and Business Forecasting Centre. The poll date may be too tight, as the selection of new Election Commission members is expected to take time. If the October 15 date holds, economic growth would be 4-4.5 per cent, but if the date is pushed to November, growth would drop 0.2 percentage point. "However, a delay to December would be too late for business," Thanawat said. The UTCC Consumer Confidence Index slipped to 80 points in July, the lowest level in 51 months. The index has been dropping steadily for 25 months, starting in June 2004. The index for overall confidence in economic conditions fell to 74.2 from 75.2 in June. Confidence in new employment possibilities dropped to 75.6 points, and confidence in future income fell to 90.2 points. A level below 100 points indicates economic pessimism. The latest index was based on a survey of 2,243 respondents, of whom 34.5 per cent felt the economic slowdown would continue, 60.4 per cent believed the economy would remain unchanged, and the remaining 5.1 per cent foresaw a better economy in the next six months. Petchanet Pratruangkrai The Nation
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