Thailand’s investment pledges hike in 2021

Illustrative image (Photo: Reuters)

Bangkok (VNA) - The Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) has announced that the combined value of foreign and local applications for investment promotion in 2021 totaled 642.7 billion baht (19.5 billion USD), up 59 percent annually, boosted mainly by FDI in Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) industries as well as the continued buildup of the power generation sector.

Electricity and electronics once again topped the list of target sectors which attracted the most applications with 104.5 billion baht in value, reflecting a soaring demand for electronics devices and parts, followed by the medical sector with 62.2 billion baht, petrochemicals and chemicals with 48.4 billion baht, agriculture and food processing with 47.7 billion baht, and automotive and parts with 24.6 billion baht. Overall, the 12 target sectors attracted a combined value of 340.5 billion baht, representing 53 percent of the total pledges.

The fastest-growing sector was digital which saw the value of applications soar almost nine-fold to 14 billion baht in 2021, from a modest 1.61 billion baht a year earlier, said BOI Secretary General Duangjai Asawachintachit.

Japan once again topped the list of FDI source countries with a combined investment value of 80.7 billion baht for 178 projects, followed by China with 38.6 billion baht in investment pledges for 112 projects, and Singapore with 29.7 billion baht for 96 projects. The top three sectors for FDI applications were electrics and electronics, petrochemicals and chemicals, and the medical cluster./.