Bangkok, Feb 1 (IANS): The Bank of Thailand (BOT) said the country's economy continued to recover in December 2022, driven by tourism, despite a global economic slowdown.

As the economy maintained its traction, the service sector continued to be the key driver of growth in December, thanks to rising foreign tourist arrivals, which boosted private consumption, Xinhua news agency quoted the bank as saying in a statement.

Thailand welcomed 2.24 million international travellers in December, beating its entire-year target of 11.15 million foreign visitors, a significant increase over the previous year's figure of less than half a million, BOT assistant governor Chayawadee Chai-Anant told a news conference.

According to the BOT, the country's economy continued to improve in the final quarter of 2022 from the previous quarter due to increasing foreign tourist arrivals, which bolstered services and private consumption growth.

However, exports, a key engine of growth, declined for the third month in a row in December 2022 due to lower demand from trading partners, which weighed on industrial production and private investment, Chayawadee said.

She said that private investment indices fell in all categories last month from a month earlier, while lower investment in machinery and equipment was in line with the slowdown in manufacturing activity.