BANGKOK, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's economy expanded 3.2 percent in the final quarter of 2024 from a year earlier, driven by public investment, exports and private consumption, official data showed on Monday.
The country's gross domestic product (GDP) in the October-December period accelerated from a 3 percent growth in the previous quarter, marking the strongest increase since the third quarter of 2022, according to data from the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC).
On a quarterly basis, the GDP grew a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, dropping sharply from a 1.2 percent rise in the previous three months, registering the fourth straight period of growth but the slowest pace in the sequence, the NESDC said in a statement.
For 2024, the Thai economy grew 2.5 percent, quickening from an upwardly revised 2.0 percent expansion a year earlier, but slightly below the official target of 2.6 percent, the NESDC said.
The Southeast Asian nation's economy is expected to grow in a range of 2.3 percent to 3.3 percent this year, unchanged from the previous projection, bolstered by government spending and private consumption, coupled with the recovery of private investment and tourism, amid ongoing growth in exports, the state economic planning agency said. ■
