Exports, a key driver of growth, dropped 4.7% in February from a year earlier, better than a 6.9% fall forecast in a Reuters poll, and against January's 4.5% decline.
In February, imports rose 1.1% from a year earlier, compared with a forecast rise of 2.1%, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.11 billion for the month.
Shipments are expected to show a further drop in the first and second quarters before improving in the second half, Phusit Ratanakul Sereroengrit, head of the ministry's department of international trade promotion, told a news conference.
"There remains a large stockpile which slows imports from other countries," he said. "The second half should be more positive," he added.
The ministry will maintain its target of 1%-2% export growth this year, official Poonpong Naiyanapakorn said.
February's export fall, which was also due to a high base last year, was led by lower shipments of industrial goods, with electronics down 4.7% year-on-year and hard disk drives tumbling 45%, the ministry said in a statement.
The value of rice exports rose 7.7% in February from a year ago but the volume dropped 5.7% to about 600,000 tonnes.
February's exports to the United States dropped 9.5% year-on-year while those to Southeast Asia fell 5.8%. Exports to China declined 7.9% from a year earlier, the ministry said.
(Reporting by Orathai Sriring, Kitiphong Thaichareon and Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Editing by Ed Davies)
By Kitiphong Thaichareon and Orathai Sriring
