Thai industrial sentiment rises in February

[BANGKOK] Thailand’s industrial sentiment index rose in February due to lower interest rates and the US Supreme Court’s ruling on tariffs, the Federation of Thai Industries said on Wednesday.

The FTI said its industrial sentiment index rose to 90.0 in February from 88.7 in the previous month, the highest in 11 months. The sentiment survey was conducted before the outbreak of war in the Middle East.

Thailand has oil reserves for at least 101 days and is seeking to buy crude from Russia, government officials have said.

The state planning agency said on Tuesday that headline inflation could rise to 1 per cent to 1.9 per cent this year if the Middle East war lasts for one to three months, and that every 1 baht (S$0.03) increase in domestic diesel prices would cut economic growth by 0.02 percentage points.

The central bank unexpectedly cut its key interest rate last month to support growth.

South-east Asia’s second-largest economy grew 2.4 per cent last year, lagging regional peers. REUTERS