While imports rose 27.88 per cent from the same period last year, Thailand posted a trade deficit of $796 million in the month, said Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai.

Combined export value in the first four months of this year reached $74.44 billion, an increase of 27.4 per cent on year. Imports expanded 27.9 per cent to $72.54 billion. Trade deficit so far has stood at $1.9 billion.

DBS Research, released prior to the availability of the official data, said the continued export growth was not surprising given that consumer demand globally in major markets remained strong. This helped support the export growth of Thailand, as well as China, Korea and Taiwan. It actually expected the 50 per cent increase in the quarter ending April, but admitted that supply chain disruptions related to the natural disasters in Japan could bring down the figure. It also noted that in that case, the drop would not be a cause for worry as it was temporary.