(Reuters photo)Private consumption rose slightly in June but private investment contracted from the previous month, central bank indexes showed on Monday, suggesting economic recovery remains patchy. The Bank of Thailand's (BOT) private consumption index for June rose 0.2% from the previous month, when it increased 1.3%. The BOT said there was a current account surplus of $4.28 billion (142.4 billion baht) in June, after a $1.13 billion (37.6 billion baht) surplus in May. Exports, based on financial settlements, rose 7.6% in June from a year earlier, the central bank said. A strong baht has yet to affect trade competitiveness and the central bank is confident of achieving its export growth forecast of 5% this year, a central bank official told a briefing on Monday.

Source: Bangkok Post July 31, 2017 08:37 UTC