The government has started planning the 2014 fiscal budget, with the focus on reducing current account deficit and accelerating public investment, said Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong.
State agencies have been told to prepare for the 2014 budget three months after the 2013 budget took effect.
The plan is to run a budget deficit but to a lesser extent of less than 2% of gross domestic product, he said.
Investment will likely be around 17% of total expenditure budget, excluding the budget under the 2-trillion-baht borrowing decree for the seven-year infrastructure investment plan.
Mr Kittiratt said the export sector would not help much at a time when the global economy was sluggish and consumer purchasing power in large economies was shrinking.
The domestic economy should therefore take the front seat in driving growth and local consumption and investment should be promoted, he said.
A senior finance official said the Budget Comptroller Department is waiting for state agencies to submit their investments requests for fiscal 2014.
Economic projections for next year being conducted by the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) will also be taken into consideration.
For 15 years, Thailand ran a budget deficit except in 2005 and 2006, when the country managed to carve out a balanced budget.
For fiscal 2013, the expenditure budget is set at 2.4 trillion baht, a deficit of 300 billion baht or 2.4% of GDP, compared to 400 billion baht or 3.5% of GDP in fiscal 2012.
Investment budget was set at 448 billion baht this fiscal year ending September 2013, or 18.7% of total expenditure, compared to 438 billion baht in fiscal 2012.