BANGKOK, June 24 — International tourist arrivals in Thailand is likely to reach nearly 27 million in 2014 as targeted, Thai News Agency (TNA) reported the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) as saying.

TCT President Piyaman Tejapaibul told journalists on Tuesday that she expected tourism in Thailand to grow in the third and fourth quarters of this year, along with the rising number of international visitors to the country to reach about 26.84 million by the end of 2014 as targeted.

Piyaman said she believes that domestic tourism should start to improve in the third quarter, as the TCT is restoring confidence among international tourists and investors.

Piyaman said that if this continued steadily, tourists from China, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and India who formed a big group of foreign visitors to Thailand, 6.84 million and 7.85 million international travellers, should visit the country in the third and fourth quarters of this year respectively.

The TCT chief reiterated that the overall international arrivals in Thailand should reach 26.84 million this year, a 1.09 per cent year-on-year increase, earning the Kingdom up to about 1.26 trillion baht from tourism-related revenues. — Bernama