Thailand Focus Week of May 18th, 2015

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Royal Thai Embassy, Washington, D.C.
Week of May 18, 2015 Executive Summary

  • U.N. chief supports Thai regional meet on boat people
  • Peace talks set to resume in the Deep South
  • Investment approvals rise, Citibank optimistic on Thailand
  • Ministry seeking to increase rural doctors
  • Thailand aiming to become yachting capital of Asia

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U.N. chief supports Thai regional meet on boat people

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon threw his support last week behind Thailand’s effort to convene a regional meeting to find a solution to the exodus of Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh as several thousand migrants continue to languish on boats, many of them abandoned by their crews, on the Bay of Bengal. Read more

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Peace talks set to resume in the Deep South

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha confirmed last week that the government is preparing to restart peace talks with representatives of rebel groups in the Deep South next month in an effort to resolve disputes and end more than a decade of violence in the Muslim-majority provinces bordering Malaysia. Read more

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Investment approvals rise, Citibank optimistic on Thailand

Thailand’s Board of Investment saw a 650 percent year-on-year increase in project approvals during the first four months of 2015, as the business community praised the central bank’s recent moves on the economy and Citibank’s country chief in Thailand expressed optimism about the Kingdom’s economic prospects. Read more

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Ministry seeking to increase rural doctors

In an address last week at Harvard University, Thailand’s Minister of Public Health said the government would focus on educating more students in rural areas to become doctors and health care professionals in an effort to help close the gap in access to health care in rural areas. Read more

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Thailand aiming to become yachting capital of Asia

With some of the most beautiful shores and coastal waters in the world, Thailand’s government wants the Kingdom to become a leading destination for yachting in Asia, and the Marine Department, Ministry of Transport, is proposing a four-pronged strategy to achieve that goal. Read more

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In this issue

Thailand at a Glance

4th Quarter 2014 Key Indicators
GDP: 0.7%
Export: $56.8 billion
Import: $49.1 billion
Export growth rate: – 1.5%
Import growth rate: – 5.7%
Current account balance: Surplus by 9.815 billion USD
Trade surplus: $7.7 billion
Unemployment: 0.6%
Headline inflation: -0.52%
Official foreign reserves: $157.11 billion USD
2014
GDP: $373.6 billion
GDP per capita: $5,445
GDP growth: 1.5-2.0%

2013
GDP: $385 billion
GDP per capita: $5,647
GDP growth: 2.9%

2012
GDP: $366 billion
GDP per capita: $5,390
GDP growth: 6.5%

2011
GDP: $345.6 billion
GDP per capita: $5,113
GDP growth: 0.1%

May 11,2015
May 4,2015

Apr 27,2015
Apr 21,2015
Apr 15,2015
Apr 7,2015

March 30,2015
March 24,2015
March 16,2015
March 9,2015
March 2,2015

February 23,2015
February 17,2015
February 9,2015
February 2,2015

January 26,2015
January 20,2015
January 12,2015
January 5,2015

Thailand Focus 2014
Thailand Focus 2013
Thailand Focus 2012
Thailand Focus 2011

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