Thai marketers fear economic woes worsening

<p>BANGKOK: Marketers in Thailand are in for a difficult second half of the </p><p>year as consumer confidence continues to drop and consumers consider </p><p>cutting back on spending, according to a survey from the University of </p><p>the Thai Chamber of Commerce. It showed that consumers are wary of the </p><p>worsening economy and most believe that a quick turnaround of the </p><p>situation was unlikely. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Most of the decline in confidence was due to the on-going slowdown of </p><p>the economy. The negative factors that pose a threat to economic </p><p>recovery have intensified, while there are hardly any positive factors," </p><p>said Thanavath Phonvichai, director of the university's Centre for </p><p>Economic and Business Forecasting. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Thanavath said negative factors included the Bank of Thailand's lowering </p><p>of projected economic growth this year, increasing fuel prices and the </p><p>weakening of the baht to more than 45 to the US dollar. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Also, the economic outlook in the United States and Japan was uncertain, </p><p>Thailand was slow in resolving bad loans and commodity prices were low, </p><p>he said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>According to the report, the consumer-confidence index has declined for </p><p>three months in a row, from February to April. The April survey covered </p><p>1,713 respondents, 40.9 per cent in Bangkok and the rest in the </p><p>provinces. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>