Thailand's consumer goods imports hit a new high of US$1.8b

It's a streak of good news.

According to DBS, the custom trade deficit is set to remain sizable even with an expected rebound in external demand over the coming months. This can largely be attributed to the domestic demand growth strategy that the authorities are employing. 

Through hikes in minimum wages, real purchasing power has increased and this has led to greater demand for consumer goods imports. In level terms, consumer goods
imports pushed to a new high of USD 1.8bn in November.

Here's more from DBS:

Capital goods imports have also surged following during the flood recovery period through 2012 and a second leg of investment led by the government may be upcoming.

Moreover, business confidence does not appear to be dented by the floods. Spurred by low interest rates, private investment should stay fairly strong. Regarding exports, signs of stabilization in the global economy should translate into an improvement in the coming months.

However, in the immediate term, key leading indicators for electronics are not showing clear signs of a turnaround. Electronic export values have also been lackluster since July last year. For December (data due in the coming days), export and import growth are expected to reach 25% and 7.4% YoY respectively.