Thailand sees 17% boost in foreign investment, hitting 58.9 billion baht in 7 months
Thailand saw a 17% increase in foreign investment, reaching 58.9 billion baht in the first seven months of this year. The announcement was made yesterday by Rachada Dhnadirek, the deputy government spokeswoman.
Investors from Japan played a major role, with 94 groups contributing 19.89 billion baht. The United States followed with 67 entities investing 3 billion baht. Singapore had 61 investors who added 12.92 billion baht. China’s 28 investors significantly contributed 11.55 billion baht, while Germany saw 16 investors bringing in about 1.29 billion baht.
This year’s inflow of overseas expenditure led to the employment of an additional 3,594 Thai citizens, marking a 9% rise for the period, as informed by the deputy spokeswoman.
She further revealed that in July alone, approval was given to 51 foreign investment applications, yielding a whopping 10 billion baht for varying industrial sectors. This singular investment surge resulted in at least 372 Thais gaining employment.
From January to July, the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) witnessed keen interest from 73 foreign investors, making up approximately 19% of the total overseas investors, she added.
According to the deputy spokeswoman, the investments attached to the EEC stood at 12.34 billion baht, approximately 21% of the aggregate foreign investment value.
Japan was seen leading this list with an investment value of 5.37 billion baht. This was closely followed by China, with investments quantified at 893 million baht and South Korea, investing a noteworthy 287 million baht.
In addition, 25 investors from various countries amassed foreign investments totalling 5.78 billion baht.
The focus of these foreign investments mainly revolved around management and manufacturing consulting, engineering and technical services, and subcontracting for manufacturing machines and vehicle parts.
Rachada emphasized the government’s foreign investment liberalisation strategy as a key factor driving investor interest.
Foreign investments bring in revenue, and jobs, and foster knowledge and technology transfer. This encompasses tasks like web development data analysis and automotive testing and research, she clarified.
The government predicts overseas spending to exceed 100 billion baht this year.
In the prior year, foreign investments grew notably by 56%, hitting 129 billion baht. Leading this trend was Japan, investing in Thai businesses.
