Thailand: Consumer prices register greatest fall in over two years in December
Consumer prices decreased 0.8% on an annual basis in December, a sharper decrease compared to November’s 0.4% year-on-year decrease. December’s result represented the largest fall in consumer prices since February 2021. Falling prices for energy and food and non-alcoholic beverages were behind the decline.
Accordingly, the trend pointed down, with annual average inflation coming in at 1.2% in December (November: 1.8%). Meanwhile, core inflation was unchanged, coming in at November’s 0.6% in December.
Finally, consumer prices fell 0.46% in December over the previous month, a sharper drop than the 0.25% drop seen in November. December’s result marked the weakest reading since May.
Commenting on the outlook, Enrico Tanuwidjaja and Sathit Talaengsatya, economists at UOB, stated:
“Demand-pullback leading to deflation risks remain low for Thailand at current juncture in our view as deflationary pressures should gradually dissipate amid the ongoing economic recovery driven by a recovery in the external sector and resilient domestic demand. In addition, amid well-anchored inflation expectations, a low inflation trend induced by supply-side interventions should also normalize once the government’s existing subsidies and other short-term measures expire in H1 2024.”