Foreign investment in Thailand surged to a remarkable five-year high in 2025, amounting to THB 324.1 billion across 1,078 projects approved under the Foreign Business Act.
Poonpong Naiyanapakorn, Director-General of the Department of Business Development (DBD), highlighted this as a record performance for the 2021-2025 period, reflecting strong foreign investor confidence in Thailand’s economic stability and its role as a regional production base and market. The 2025 figures represent a substantial increase from THB 228 billion in 2024 and considerably higher than the THB 82.8 billion recorded in 2021.
The 1,078 approvals in 2025 comprised 291 foreign business licence applications and 787 foreign business certificate applications, which include projects promoted under the investment promotion law, approvals under the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand law, and those utilizing rights under treaties or international agreements.
The top five sources of foreign investment by number of approvals were:
- Japan: 186 cases (17%), investing THB 85,688 million. Key sectors include engineering and technical services (e.g., automotive parts design, production-process consulting), modern distribution centers, software development, and contract manufacturing (e.g., machinery, vehicle parts, electrical appliance parts).
- Singapore: 167 cases (15%), investing THB 103,399 million. Investments spanned hotels, data centers and data hosting, EV charging station services, and contract manufacturing (e.g., metal products, printed circuit boards, plastic parts).
- China: 152 cases (14%), investing THB 35,046 million. Key areas include wood processing for activated carbon, engineering/procurement/construction for wind-power infrastructure, scientific testing services, and contract manufacturing (e.g., plastic parts, electronics, smart electrical appliances).
- United States: 148 cases (14%), investing THB 5,073 million. Sectors include retail (electronics, machinery, dietary supplements), advertising, software platform design/development, and contract manufacturing (e.g., precious-metal jewelry, automotive electronic components).
- Hong Kong: 113 cases (10%), investing THB 14,869 million. Focus areas included engineering services for wind-power systems, Type 1 telecommunications services, data centers, and contract manufacturing (e.g., plastic compounds, electronic components).
The Board of Investment (BOI) channel played a crucial role, accounting for nearly half of all approvals with 527 cases (49% of total), valued at THB 241,869 million. This aligns with the government’s strategy to attract investment into future industries such as advanced technology, digital and AI, electric vehicles, clean energy, and agri-food. The leading BOI-approved business categories were:
- Contract manufacturing services (e.g., metal/plastic products, automotive parts), supporting higher value-added production.
- Trade and investment support services (TISO), reinforcing Thailand’s position as a regional investment and logistics hub.
- Computer-related services, including software development and data centers, bolstering the digital economy and AI services.
The Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) continued to be a significant draw for foreign investors in 2025, attracting 313 investors (29% of the total), a 4% increase from 2024. These investments in the EEC provinces amounted to THB 106,461 million, representing 33% of the total foreign investment value. China led in the EEC with 83 cases (THB 19,263 million), followed by Japan with 67 cases (THB 33,840 million) and Singapore with 46 cases (THB 23,238 million). Investments in the EEC covered diverse fields such as automotive parts design, product R&D, digital services platform development, data centers, and contract manufacturing for electronics, synthetic rubber, metal products, and vehicle parts.
