Virus or not, Thailand's economy was always in question

Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-O-Cha visiting a patient screening point at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. As of Saturday (Feb 1), Thailand has 19 confirmed Coronavirus cases, the second-highest in the world after China. - EPA

BANGKOK: Outside China, Thailand has the largest number of patients infected by the novel coronavirus. Unfortunately, the export-reliant US$500bil economy, South-East Asia’s second-largest, was sickly even before the outbreak of the pneumonia-like illness. That reflects simultaneous blows from the Sino-U.S. trade war, the worst drought in decades and a stubbornly strong currency.

Add in Beijing’s newly imposed restrictions on Chinese travelers, who account for the lion's share of arrivals, plus the knock-on effect on other tourists, and a recession begins to look imminent.