Thailand attracts nearly 100 billion THB in foreign investment in 11 months

Thailand attracts nearly 100 billion THB in foreign investment in 11 months, illustration photo/ Source: freepik.com

Bangkok – A total of 612 foreign enterprises with a total investment of over 98.28 billion THB (2 billion USD) were granted licenses to do business in Thailand in 11 months of 2023, according to Oramon Sapthaweetham, Director-General of the Department of Business Development under Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce.

The businesses provided employment for over 6,000 local people.

Japan was the biggest foreign investor in Thailand with 129 businesses valued at 30.1 billion THB (926 million USD). Japanese companies invested in various sectors, including the petroleum exploration service within the surveyed areas in the Gulf of Thailand, manufacturing of vehicle components, and engineering and technical services such as analysis and processing of greenhouse gas data in various business activities.

It was followed by Singapore with 95 businesses with 22.2 billion THB, investing in businesses such as life and property insurance agencies, the hotel industry, and electronic financial services. The US ranked third with 95 businesses, with 4.2 billion THB, focusing on services related to software rights utilisation, design, development, and system installation of software programmes and applications used for business operations. Additionally, they provided services in the banking and financial sectors, acted as agents for procurement, and distributed various types of vehicles, including electric cars.

Oramon said that the involvement of foreigners in business in Thailand in recent times has contributed to the transfer of specialised technological knowledge from the investing countries to local people. They include knowledge related to petroleum drilling, design of electrical and electronic systems in railway projects, natural gas pipeline systems on land, and maintenance and care techniques for components, tools, and equipment used in power plant maintenance.

Thailand to provide health insurance for foreigners Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health has announced that its Health Insurance for Non-Thai People (Hint) system will debut on January 1, 2024, allowing stateless and non-Thai people to get access to healthcare coverage.

Vietnam, Thailand forge educational cooperation Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Tran Quang Phuong hosted a reception in Hanoi on December 28 for a delegation of Thailand’s Udon Thani Rajabhat University led by its President Assoc. Prof. Dr. Khanisara Thansunthornsakun.

Thailand promotes AI application The Digital Economy and Society (DES) Ministry of Thailand has outlined its “quick wins AI & cloud policy” to promote artificial intelligence (AI) adoption and support domestic AI technology providers.