continued to gain further traction driven by both growths in domestic and external demand. The value of merchandise exports expanded solidly on the back of the continual increase in export quantity and rising

quarter of 2018 continued to grow year-on-year on the back of buoyant domestic demand. Private consumption continued to gain traction, supported by improvement in income and employment. Furthermore, there

traction, buoyed by both domestic and international factors. However, the business sector faced rising challenges, namely various forms of competition, a borderless marketplace within the ASEAN Economic

E_1 Legal_FA_2015_12_29-c A WWCCoorrppLL44..11hhiigg A Executive Summary 1 Management Discussion and Analysis For the Year Ended December 31, 2017 In 2017, Thai economic growth gained traction

Project, 2017 of the Thai Investors Association. 3.2 Business Directions of KASIKORNBANK and the Wholly-owned Subsidiaries of KASIKORNBANK Thai economic growth gained traction in the second quarter of 2017

Management 36 1 1. Overview of Operating Environment 1.1 Global and Thai Economy in the Third Quarter of 2017 Overall, the global economy gained traction throughout the first nine months of 2017. Bright