BANGKOK, May 26- OSMEP revealed the SME Entrepreneur Sentiment Index (SMESI) in April rose for the fourth straight month after being driven by Songkran. make a trip and have more spending But operators are still worried about electricity costs pushing up costs.
Mr. Weerapong Malai, Director of the Office of Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion (OSMEP), revealed the report on the SME Entrepreneur Sentiment Index (SME Sentiment Index: SMESI) for April 2023, found that the SMESI index was at the level of 55.3, increasing up from 54.9 level of the previous month This is the fourth consecutive month of growth, which has a positive effect on businesses, especially in the trade and tourism-related sectors. However, SME entrepreneurs are increasingly concerned about costs due to rising electricity prices.
The key factor contributing to the increase in the SMESI index in April was overall orders. Production/trade/service volume and overall investment The confidence level increased to 67.0, 59.6 and 54.3 from 64.9, 57.9 and 52.8, respectively. profit and employment decelerated from the previous month. at the level of 39.1, 61.4 and 50.5 from the level of 40.4, 62.4 and 51.0 by almost all components of the index is much higher than the base value of 50, indicating that entrepreneurs have confidence in each component at a good level. Only the cost side is below 50 where the operators are concerned about the cost of electricity.
When considering each business sector, it was found that businesses in the trade and service sectors In particular, tourism-related sectors expanded due to increased purchasing power and travel during the Songkran festival. While the agricultural sector and the manufacturing sector slowed down.
As for the confidence index, forecasts for the next 3 months It dropped to 52.5 from 53.1 but remained in the confidence range. due to entering the low season which is a time when it rains often However, entrepreneurs still believe that after the election, product prices, costs including utility bills will begin to decline.
In addition, OSMEP has conducted a survey of SME entrepreneurs regarding the need for support or assistance from the government and found that what entrepreneurs want the most are costs and expenses. Especially the problem of increasing electricity bills. and want to control the price of products / raw materials fuel price reduce the rate of taxation And want the government to expand the project to stimulate purchasing power that has been implemented again.-Thai News Agency
Source: Thai News Agency