FDI sluggish as investor mood dims
Foreign direct investment for the whole of 2016 is expected to grow by just 2.7%, indicating that confidence in the Thai economy remains fragile, says Vallop Vitanakorn, vice-chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries. He said the likely FDI growth of 2.7% is low when compared with the 10%-20% seen when the Thai economy is performing well. As a result, the FTI expects the Thai government to hold more roadshows in order to attract more foreign investment and help offset contractions in investment caused by political turbulence over the past few years. “At this time, foreign investors have less confidence in the Thai economy, which deters further investment,” Mr. Vallop said. “This shows that the global economy and the Thai economy have not yet recovered fully.” In contrast, the government has set an annual foreign investment target value at as high as 550 billion baht, up from the previous target of 450 billion baht.
