Thailand's inflation rate to rise to 4pc next year

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BANGKOK, Dec 26 (Xinhua): Thailand's inflation rate is likely to rise to 4 per cent next year, fuelled by rising oil prices and higher product prices, the Fiscal Policy Office (FPO) said today.
FPO director-general Pannee Sathavarodom was quoted Wednesday by the Thai News Agency as saying that the general inflation rate in November rose to 3 per cent from 2.5 per cent in October.
Should oil prices continue to stay high and product prices increase after the New Year holiday, she said, Thailand's inflation rate might rise to 4 per cent.
"What will affect the inflation rate most is the oil price volatility. We estimate crude oil prices in the global market will stay high at 80-85 US dollars per barrel. This, coupled with the wage hike and the government officials' payroll rise, will make the inflation rate rise to 4 per cent," she said.
The Thai economy in November continued to grow satisfactorily, driven by exports, which increased by 24.4 per cent to a record high of 14.7 billion US dollars, Pannee Sathavarodom said.
At the same time, imports increased further by 17.4 per cent to 12.8 billion US dollars, resulting in a continued trade surplus of 1.9 billion US dollars.