Thailand

Thailand, a country located in Southeast Asia, is bordered by Myanmar to the north and northwest, Lao PDR and Cambodia to the east, Malaysia and the Gulf of Thailand to the south, and the Andaman Sea to the southwest. A unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known originally as Siam, the country was renamed Thailand (Land of the Free) in 1939. Thailand’s population is currently 70 million, its capital city is Bangkok, its currency is the baht (THB), and the official language is Thai.

Thailand is Southeast Asia’s second largest economy after Indonesia. With a well-developed infrastructure, a free-enterprise economy, and generally pro-investment policies, Thailand historically has had a strong economy. However, since 2019, the economy has declined due to weaker demand for exports reflecting the impact of US-China trade tensions, slowing public investments, the COVID-19 pandemic, and a drought impacting agricultural production. In 2020, the economy declined by 6.2%. This was followed by a recovery in 2021 with a growth of 1.6%, which included an increase in the export of goods by 18.8%, private consumption by 0.3%, and investment by 3.4%. Inflation for 2021 was 1.2%. A growth of 3.5% to 4.5% is currently forecast for 2022. 

PwC has had a presence in Thailand for 63 years. Our client base includes some of the largest Thai and multinational companies as well as government institutions. Our close interaction with both economic and state bodies allows us to keep up with the fast-changing business environment. We have over 2,000 people working in our Bangkok-based office.