BANGKOK, Dec 28: Thailand’s current account surplus in November rose sharply from a year earlier, supported by record growth in exports, the central bank said Friday.

The surplus in the current account, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, hit $2.6 billion in November, more than double the $1.2 billion a year ago, the Bank of Thailand said in a monthly report.

“Strong exports continued to support our current account surplus while growth in imports moderated,” said a central bank official.

Exports, the main driver of the Thai economy, jumped by 24.5 percent year-on-year to a record 14.6 billion dollars in November, the central bank said.

Shipments of electronic products, vehicles and jewellery and gold rose sharply in the month, it added.

Imports expanded by 17.1 per cent to 12.6 billion dollars, resulting in a trade surplus of two billion dollars in November.

Exports to the United States, Thailand’s top trading partner, rose 5.8 per cent year-on-year to 1.7 billion dollars, and shipments to Japan jumped 14.6 per cent to 1.7 billion dollars in November.

—AFP