The main articles are:
GDP
2023
0.5% of GDP comes from remittances from the United States
Twentieth in the world in GDP by PPP
2022
Thailand's share of global PPP GDP to 0.92%
Main article: World Economy
GDP size - $0.52 trillion
2021
GDP size - $0.55 trillion
Cut GDP growth forecast to 2.8%
The Ministry of Finance of Thailand at the end of January 2021 lowered its forecast for GDP growth for 2021 to 2.8%, from 4.5%, which it predicted in October 2020.
Non-financial debt
2022: Aggregate non-financial debt
National debt
2023: State debt - 54% of GDP
2017: State debt - 33% of GDP
Currency: Bath
Main article: Digital baht of Thailand
Inflation
2024: 1.8% in May
Investments
2021: 5.65 million NFT users
Minerals
2021
Thailand's share in the global production of rare earth minerals - 2.9%
Oil production per day
Power
2020: Energy consumption per capita
and
R&D
2020: R&D spending - $5.2 billion
Tourism
2025: Foreign tourists allowed to pay with cryptocurrency in Phuket
In January 2025, the Thai authorities launched a pilot program to accept cryptocurrency payments from foreign tourists on Phuket Island. The initiative will allow travelers to pay for goods and services using bitcoin.
Thai Deputy Prime Minister Phichai Chunhawajira announced the launch of the program at a seminar of the Thai Marketing Association. The project is being implemented within the framework of the current legislation and will not require changes to the legal framework.
To participate in the program, tourists need to register their bitcoins on Thai exchanges and go through the identity verification procedure. All cryptocurrency payments will be converted into Thai baht through a special clearing house.
According to the Deputy Prime Minister, the program is designed to make digital transactions more accessible in tourist areas and increase the country's competitiveness in the international market. As an example, he cited the opportunity for foreign citizens to purchase real estate in Thailand for bitcoins.
In December 2024, former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawat called on the government to more actively study cryptocurrencies and conduct experiments in a regulated environment to match global digitalization trends.
Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission is also working on new rules to expand opportunities to invest in digital assets. Binance Thailand CEO Nirun Fuvattananukul noted that the measures are aimed at creating an ecosystem where traditional finances will coexist with digital assets.
In some regions of the country, there is already experience in using cryptocurrencies. For example, in the Huai Phueng district of Kalasin province, more than 80 local enterprises accept payments in bitcoins through the Bitcoin Lightning application.[1]
2024
Tourist flow from Russia to Thailand increased by 18% to 1.7 million people
The number of Russian tourists visiting Thailand reached 1.7 million people in 2024, which is 18% more than in 2023. Such data from the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Thailand became known in early January 2025.
According to TASS, Russia ranked fifth among all countries in terms of the number of tourists visiting the kingdom, repeating the record figure in 2013. The leading position is occupied by China with 6.7 million tourists, followed by Malaysia - 4.9 million, India - 2.1 million and South Korea - 1.9 million visitors.
The head of the tourism department of Thailand, Thapani Kiatphaibun, explained that the stable growth in the number of Russian tourists over the past three years has been due to the reorientation of tourist flows towards Asia and the Middle East. According to her estimates, the income from Russian tourists in 2024 amounted to about $5 billion.
The total flow of foreign tourists to Thailand reached 35.5 million people in 2024, which is 26% more than in 2023. However, this result did not exceed the record of 2019, when 40 million foreigners visited the country, and the share of the tourism industry in GDP was 12%.
Positive dynamics remains at the beginning of 2025 - in the first five days of January, Thailand received more than 500 thousand foreign guests, of which 47 thousand were tourists from Russia, providing the country with the third place in terms of the number of visits during this period.
The increase in tourist flow from Russia to Thailand demonstrates the growing popularity of the Asian destination among Russian travelers. This trend contributes to the strengthening of tourist ties between the two countries and the development of transport infrastructure to ensure the growing demand for air transportation.
The steady growth in the number of Russian tourists in Thailand also stimulates the development of tourist infrastructure aimed at Russian-speaking guests, including the expansion of the network of Russian-speaking guides and information services.[2]
Approaching tourist flow to the level before COVID-19
In October 2024, the Thai authorities expect the number of foreign tourists to reach 40 million in 2025, exceeding the record set before the COVID-19 pandemic.
2023: Growth of tourist flow from Russia 10 times to 203 thousand people in January
Russia took second place in terms of tourist flow to Thailand in January 2023, the number of tourists visiting the country increased 10 times compared to the same period last year to 203 thousand travelers.
2022: The flow of tourists from Russia to Thailand has grown 14 times to 435 thousand people
The tourist flow from Russia to Thailand in 2022 increased by more than 14 times compared to 2021 - up to 435 thousand people - ATOR.
2021: Development of Cryptotourism
At the end of November 2021, the Tourism Authority of Thailand announced that it was working with the country's regulators and the local cryptocurrency exchange to pave the way for the adoption of digital tokens for travel. According to Governor Yutasak Supasorn, this can help a country dependent on tourism to reimburse part of the income lost due to coronavirus infection in the amount of $80 billion.
In 2022, the country's tourism authority will create a new division that will produce its own crypto coin, create a wallet and a new tourism ecosystem. The Office is already in talks with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Bank of Thailand and the country's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Bitkub. Thailand, popular among vacationers with its tropical islands with clean beaches and stormy nightlife, attracted almost 40 million foreign travelers in 2019, which brought in more than $60 billion in income.
 | If Thailand wants to restore about 80% of pre-pandemic tourism revenue in 2023, but with half the number of foreign tourists we've seen in 2019, we can achieve that by bringing people like Russell Crow or cryptocurrency holder Tim Cook here. Cryptocurrencies are the future, so we have to make Thailand a cryptopositive society to take in this group of quality tourists, "said Governor Yuthasak Supasorn. |  |
Although Thailand allowed quarantine-free entry to travelers from more than 60 countries, tourism will return to the level that existed before the COVID-19 pandemic, only by 2024. In the first quarter of 2022, the country plans to receive about 1 million wealthy tourists, and before that, the country closed its borders to foreign citizens for more than a year. The country's authorities are betting that 10% of cryptocurrency owners will eventually go to Thailand.[3]
2019
40 million foreign tourists
How dependent Thailand is on tourism:% of the industry in GDP
2018
Food industry
Alcohol market
2018: Minimum age to purchase alcoholic beverages
Foreign trade
2024
Trade between Russia and Thailand grew by 11% over the year and reached $2 billion
The volume of trade turnover between Russia Thailand and reached $2 billion at the end of 2024, showing an increase of 6 to 11% compared to 2023. Russia Ambassador to Thailand Yevgeny Tomikhin spoke about this in early January 2025.
According to him, Russian and Thai entrepreneurs are actively developing cooperation despite external restrictions. Business communities in both countries are particularly interested in long-term projects in the fields of industry, power, transport, agriculture and pharmaceuticals.
At the same time, according to the Thai Ministry of Trade, cited by TASS, from January to November 2024, the country's trade with Russia amounted to $1.43 billion. This indicator demonstrates a significant improvement compared to 2023, when the total volume of trade decreased by 17% to $1.5 billion.
The resumption of trade turnover growth in 2024 is associated with the intensification of business contacts and a number of successful business forums in Thailand.
| | In the context of tightening the so-called sanctions, the business of the two countries wants to cooperate and is looking for models of interaction, "said Ambassador Yevgeny Tomikhin. | |
Promising areas of bilateral cooperation are projects in the field of food security, the development of new transport routes and the development of industrial cooperation. Particular attention is paid to expanding interaction in the pharmaceutical industry.
The positive dynamics of trade turnover between Russia and Thailand creates the basis for further expansion of economic cooperation. Business circles of both countries are interested in implementing joint projects and finding new formats of interaction.
The development of trade and economic relations between the countries contributes to the diversification of foreign economic relations and opens up new opportunities for entrepreneurs of both states in the context of the transformation of global markets and supply chains.[4]
Take-off of exports to Kyrgyzstan
Thailand's exports to Kyrgyzstan rose sharply in July 2024.
It is believed that Thailand has joined the "transshipment" of Western goods to Russia.
The US is becoming the main export destination
2023: World No. 2 rice exporter
2022
The United States is the largest export destination
Decline in exports to Russia by 40% due to shortages of ships and containers after the imposition of sanctions by the United States and its allies
Imports from Thailand to Russia in the first 10 months of 2022 decreased by 40.31%, amounting to $495 million. The main reason for the reduction in supplies is the lack of ships and containers due to the restrictive measures introduced by Western countries.
No. 2 in the world in terms of rice exports
2021: China's tenth largest trading partner
2019: Computer Device Exports
2017: Trade turnover between Russia and Thailand increased by 26.7% to $2.2 billion
On February 20, 2018, a series of bilateral meetings of Russian and Thai companies took place, at which the parties discussed possible project areas of cooperation and an algorithm for interaction within the framework of the agreements reached.
During the business mission on February 21, 2018, a plenary meeting was held with the participation of Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation Alexei Gruzdev, who headed the Russian delegation during the visit. He noted that Thailand is one of Russia's key partners in Southeast Asia.
"We observe positive dynamics of economic indicators of Russian-Thai interaction - in 2017, trade turnover increased by 26.7% compared to 2016 and amounted to $2.2 billion," said Alexey Gruzdev. - There are opportunities for expanding cooperation, there are serious reserves and significant potential. First of all, it is necessary to diversify the structure of trade. It is now, unfortunately, largely traditional: Russia supplies mainly mineral raw materials, Thailand - spare parts for vehicles, rubber, food products and agricultural raw materials. Along with the optimization of mutual trade, we need to move on to the implementation of specific, large, mutually beneficial infrastructure projects. "
Anna Belyaeva, Managing Director for International Development of the Russian Export Center, also spoke at the plenary session with a presentation of the REC. She noted that REC in 2017 provided financial and non-financial support to Russian-Thai projects for a total of $41.8 million.
"Financial support was provided primarily to companies in the metallurgical industry and the helicopter industry, the amount of allocated funds amounted to $40 million," Anna Belyaeva said.
The most popular services in the field of non-financial support were market research, the search for international partners and buyers, consulting (logistics, buyers, etc.), as well as certification.
After the plenary session, a memorandum of intent was signed between the Russian Export Center and Eximbank Thailand. Anna Belyaeva and President of Eximbank Thailand Pisit Serevivattana participated in the signing.
On February 22, 2018, for the participants of the business mission, a visit to the facilities of the Eastern Economic Corridor program was organized. Alexey Gruzdev noted that Russian companies are already showing interest in investment projects with Thai companies under the Eastern Economic Corridor program.
Agriculture
2019: Low use of pesticides in agriculture
Real estate
2023: Chinese and Russians top list of foreign condo buyers in Thailand
The Chinese and Russians topped Thailand's list of foreign condo buyers in 2023, with sales soaring at tourist destinations such as Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket. Sales rose 38% to 10,703 units in the first nine months of the year.
Unemployment
2020: Unemployment rate - 1%
Incomes of the population
2023: Minimum wage - $195
Hunger
Consumption
Meat
2023: Fish consumption is higher than meat consumption
2019: Pork is the most consumed type of meat
Notes
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