BANGKOK, July 1 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's business sentiment inched up in June due to improved confidence in the manufacturing sector, which was in line with a gradual recovery of production activities, data released by the central bank showed on Monday.
According to the Bank of Thailand (BOT), the Southeast Asian country's business sentiment index (BSI) was recorded at 48.7 last month, up from 48 in May, signaling an unclear recovery path as the figure remained constantly in contractionary territory below the 50-point threshold.
The manufacturing index has lingered close to the 50-threshold since 2022, indicating a relatively stable production situation. However, the indices in several industries rebounded noticeably in the second quarter of this year, the BOT said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the non-manufacturing index has continuously dropped since the start of 2023, falling below the 50-threshold in most businesses, led by the real estate and retail trade sectors. Despite that, the construction sector index increased on the back of accelerated government budget disbursements.
The three-month expected BSI came in at 51.9 in June, down from 52.9 a month earlier, primarily owing to lower confidence in the non-manufacturing sector while that of the manufacturing sector remained stable, the BOT said.
The reading was based on a survey of 777 respondents from large and medium-sized firms, the central bank said. ■
