Thailand’s Q1 tourist arrivals up 15.5%

A guide leads a tourist group through the Grand Palace area 24 March. International tourist arrivals rose 15.45% in the first three months of 2016

Reuters :  International tourist arrivals in Thailand rose 15.45% in the first three months of 2016 from a year earlier and are expected to grow 13% in the current quarter, an official at the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said on Monday.

The industry accounts for 10% of economic output and has been one of the few bright spots for Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, which has struggled to regain traction since an army coup in May 2014 ended months of street protests.

In the January-March period, the number of visitors was 9.03 million, generating revenue of 455 billion baht ($12.96 billion) or up 18% from a year earlier, Sugree Sithivanich, TAT’s deputy governor for marketing communications, told reporters.

Some 7.87 million foreign tourists are expected in the April-June quarter and will generate revenue of about 375 billion baht, he said.

The government has forecast a record 32 million arrivals this year, up 7.1% from last year’s 29.88 million.

Thailand’s economy grew 2.8% in 2015, up from 0.8% in 2014, but its recovery remains patchy. This year, the central bank predicts growth of 3.1%.