Thai GDP expected to under 3% due to floods

Bank of Thailand (BOT) Governor Prasarn Trairatvorakul predicted on Thursday that widespread floods will trim the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) forecast of this year by more than 1 percent to lower than 3 percent. The ongoing floods could cost damage to industrial sector in the next six months at about 100 billion baht (3.24 billion U.S. dollars), but the estimation has not yet included damage cost of infrastructure, state properties and public consumption. The BOT earlier anticipated that the country's GDP for 2011 will expand 4.1 percent. "BOT will continue closely watching the situation and if it is necessary, the bank will convene an extraordinary meeting with Monetary Policy Committee to issue monetary policy that could economic reconstruction," Prasarn said. The governor, however, maintained 2012 growth projection at 4.2 percent. Thailand's worst floods have thus far inundated thousands of factories including Honda, Toyota and Western Digital, putting over half a million of employees at risk of being laid-off. Three months of heavy monsoon rains have killed 320 people, damaged the homes and livelihoods of millions of people, mostly in northern and central Thailand, and forced tens of thousands to seek refuge in shelters.