Sugar and rubber planters gave a glimpse of what lay ahead in 1999 by signing off last year with noisy street protests to back their demands for higher prices and debt relief.

With world commodities prices on a gradual descent, the baht remaining resolutely steady, local demand slowing and some output set to fall due a severe dry spell expected early this year, analysts said they saw more farmers taking to the streets.

Opposition leader and former premier Chavalit Yongchaiyudh set the ball rolling by for farmers by accusing the government of backing rich businesses and the ailing financial sector at the expense of poor farmers.

He used the same rhetoric last year but failed to get the full backing of farmers as most of them were busy raking in cash because prices were high and the baht weak.

Chavalit has issued a veiled threat to the government by saying that the plight of farmers is set to be so fragile that he can bring them on to the streets at "the blow of a whistle."

Thailand is a leading world producer and exporter of rubber, sugar, rice and tapioca.

In 1998, the farm sector pulled in much-needed foreign exchange for cash-strapped Thailand as prices soared amid a weak baht and robust world demand for rice.

But the agriculture and cooperatives ministry recently reported that income from the sale of 14 key products would fall 13.4 per cent to 403.4 billion baht ($11.2 billion) this year.

The farm sector also accounted for around 12 per cent of gross domestic product last year and provided a much-needed cushion for unemployment as Thailand weathered its worst economic crisis in decades.

The government estimates that farm sector revenue will drop by around 77 billion baht this year.

"World commodity prices are expected to ease by around 2.2 per cent this year," said an economist at the National Economic and Social Development Board, a government think-tank.

"The world price was also low last year but the weak baht helped boost the revenue in baht terms."

Deputy premier and commerce minister Supachai Panitchpakdi forecast Thailand's rice exports this year would drop to around 5.5 million tonnes compared with a record 6.41 million tonnes last year.

Experts forecast that world rice import demand in 1999 could drop by between 3.75-6.75 million tonnes from a record of around 26.75 million tonnes projected last year.

That is bad news for Thailand, the world's top rice seller.

Although Thai rice exports last year fetched $2.1 billion, in 1999 export volume and prices are expected to drop. Traders predict that due to weaker demand, prices could fall at least 10 per cent from 1998 levels.

As for rubber, the International Natural Rubber Organisation has forecast no real or substantial improvement in prices until mid-1999 at the earliest.

Thai sugar is unlikely to be a hot product this year as the overall demand for sugar in Asia is seen remaining sluggish.

Arporn Chewakengkra, an economic adviser to Thai prime minister Chuan Leekpai, said that the government was very concerned about growing unemployment.

"Last year the farm sector played an important role in absorbing those who lost jobs in other sectors. I don't think that will happen this year," she said.

"Among measures to help the farm sector this year are price supports, finding cheap sources of funds for farmers and the farm-related industry and to look for export markets for each commodity."