World Bank2024-12-242024-12-242024-12-24https://hdl.handle.net/10986/42584The economy decelerated slightly. Manufacturing and private consumption weakened while exports and tourism continued to support growth. Growth is projected to accelerate to 2.4 percent in 2024, with further improvement expected in the second half of the year driven by increased budget execution and goods exports. Despite low government investment disbursement, the THB 10,000 cash handouts for low-income households may stimulate growth. However, flooding poses downside risks to growth and may add to price pressure. Inflation edged up due to fresh food and core inflation. The Thai baht appreciated due to expectations of a Federal Reserve easing cycle and a current account surplus. The Bank of Thailand (BOT) unexpectedly lowered the policy rate by 25 basis points to 2.25 percent.en-USCC BY-NC 3.0 IGOECONOMIC GROWTHINDUSTRYMANUFACTURING AND PRIVATE CONSUMPTIONEXPORTS AND TOURISMFLOODING RISKSBriefWorld Bank10.1596/42584