You’d be hard-pressed to find a country that wasn’t set back by any one of the global events of the last couple of years. Still, in 2020, Thailand ranked as the nation with the sixth-highest GDP in the East Asia & Pacific region. Take out Australia, and Thailand makes it into the top five.
With most industries making a comeback and many new tech-driven ones picking up steam – such as the electric vehicles industry – there’s optimism that Thailand can continue to grow. Of its many industries, three headline as the fastest-growing right now.
One of Thailand’s most relied-upon industries is tentatively making its way back, showing incredible growth on the understandably-low figures of the last couple of years
Tourism is being enabled greatly by foreign tourists being given a quarantine waiver, with an anticipated 5.5 million people set to visit the country this year. It’s an increase on the initial forecast, per CNBC, but still short of 2019’s 40 million foreign tourists.
Export is also seeing significant growth of late, with Thailand’s expanding industries allowing the export industry to flourish. In 2020 alone, over $20 billion was earned in trade surplus, with Asian nations being the primary recipients of goods. Atop the exports are vehicles, meat, seafood, electronics, as well as precious metals and gems, with the latter two being the fastest-growing in sales within the quick-rising industry.
Another much more contained industry that’s proven itself to grow like wildfire lately is that of gambling – particularly sports betting. Online is the choice of platform for most, with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society in Thailand estimating that annually, some $32 million is spent at online gambling sites. While the World Bank sees digital and disruptive tech as set to generate over $3 billion in Thailand, tech isn’t the only driver for growth.
