Thailand’s business registrations set to soar this year

Tourism recovery is expected to help increase new business registrations in Thailand this year. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

Bangkok (VNA) – Thailand’s Commerce Ministry foresees a positive trend in new business registrations for this year  as its tourism sector, e-commerce and electric vehicles (EV) market are expected to recover.

Auramon Supthaweethum, Director-General of the Business Development Department, said on March 6 that in the first two months of 2024, new business registrations in the country have seen a 1.57% increase, reaching a total of 17,270. The cumulative registered capital has also surged by 14.5%, amounting to 46 billion THB (1.3 billion USD).

Auramon attributed the uptick to several factors. The economy is on the rebound, tourism-related businesses are resuming operations post-pandemic, private consumption and exports are expanding, and significant public infrastructure projects are underway in alignment with the government’s bio-, circular, and green economic model.

She said her department is monitoring inflation, interest rates, and household debt to gauge long-term economic conditions. New business registrations in the first quarter of 2024 are expected to range from 23,000 to 27,000. The entire year’s total is projected to be between 90,000 and 95,000, marking a 5-15% increase.

Auramon said that new registrations in the e-commerce sector in the first two months of this year have soared by 32%, totalling 479. The combined registered capital for these businesses has seen a 32.9% year-on-year increase, reaching 555 million THB.

More e-commerce businesses are anticipated to register due to the Revenue Department’s mandate for electronic platforms to establish electronic special accounts. These accounts will report revenue from their online merchants and are effective from January 2024.

The department is optimistic about an increase in new business registrations this year, driven mainly by higher investments in the EV industry. Investors from both domestic and foreign origins are showing interest in sectors such as electrical control systems, electronic equipment systems, and charging stations.

In 2024, the Foreign Business Committee approved 14 investors from countries and territories like Singapore, China, Hong Kong (China), Japan, and the US under the Foreign Business Act with a combined registered capital of 22 billion THB./.