BANGKOK, 26 March 2014 Around 120 billion baht worth of investment may be diverted from Thailand if the political situation prolongs until the end of the year, according to the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC).
At Phisanwanit, director of the UTCC’s Center for International Trade Studies (CITS), on Tuesday revealed the center’s findings from an evaluation of Thai businesses’ expansion based on the opinions of business operators. Without the political problem, as much as 90% of all businesses would keep their production bases in Thailand and divert only 10% of their investment capital, roughly 77 billion baht, to other ASEAN countries. However, if the political situation extends to the end of the year, three times as many businesses will likely decide to relocate their investment bases, and Thailand will be missing out on 120 billion baht of investment. If the situation extends into 2015, 70% of all the businesses will relocate their bases to other ASEAN countries, depriving Thailand of 200 billion baht worth of investment.
According to Mr. At, industries most prone to relocation include the food and beverage industry; retail, finance and insurance industry; and computer and electronics industry. Indonesia tops the choice of target countries for relocation, followed by Myanmar, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore.
