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Asia and Oceania
Thailand |
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Country information
ECONOMY
Basic economic facts
GDP: US$245.8bn(2007)
GDP per capita (PPP): US$9,200 (2006)
Annual growth: 4.8% (2007)
Inflation: 2.3
% (2007)
Major industries: services including tourism, manufacturing including computers & parts, vehicles and parts and electronics.
Major trading partners (ranked by value): US, Japan, China, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia and UK.
Exchange rate: £1=Bt50 (1st Q 2009).
In the 25 years before the South East Asian downturn in 1997, Thailand's economy was transformed from being primarily agri-based to one of the most diverse in the region. Active promotion of Foreign Direct Investment resulted in the rapid development of an export-orientated industrial capability driven by a quality labour-intensive manufacturing sector producing products such as computer accessories and automotive parts. The latter helped Thailand to manufacture over one million vehicles in 2005 and become the seventh largest global exporter of motor vehicles.
Thailand's economy has made a good recovery since the Asian financial crisis in 1997 with average annual growth of 5.6% from 2002-2006. But the sharp rise in world oil prices coupled with domestic political turmoil affecting the local economy brought growth down to 5.0% in 2006. Low growth was followed by a military coup in September 2006, at a time when new low-cost regional competitors were on the increase (ie China, India, Vietnam). The Bank of Thailand responded with a series of interest rate cuts in 2007 to counter slowing growth as well as to keep an appreciating currency at bay. Growth for 2007 was 4.8% underpinned by strong exports. There were hopes that the elections in December 2007 would herald increased economic growth, but continued political uncertainty meant growth in the first quarter of 2008 was 5.7%.
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