The Digital Economy and Society (DES) Ministry forecasts a 5.7% year-on-year growth in digital GDP for this year, which is 2.2 times higher than the projected Thai GDP growth. This increase is credited to efforts to encourage the public sector towards digital government practices and stimulate investment in cloud services and data centers.
This year, the digital economy’s value is expected to reach 4.44 trillion baht, highlighting the sector’s significance, according to the ministry.
The National Economic and Social Development Council anticipates a 2.6% growth in Thai GDP this year.
Private sector digital investment is projected to increase by 2.8% year-on-year, while government digital investment is expected to grow by 4.5%, showing an improvement from a negative base the previous year.
Private consumption within the digital sector is targeted to grow by 5.6%, outpacing the estimated national consumption growth of 4.8% for this year.
Government expenditure on digital products is anticipated to rise by 11.4%, driven by faster budget disbursement.
In 2024, the value of digital industry exports for goods and services is expected to increase by 17.2%, a significant rise from the 5.1% growth seen the previous year. Meanwhile, total exports of goods and services in the country are estimated to grow by 6.1%, up from 2.1% in 2023.
Imports of digital goods and services are also expected to rise by 9.0%, compared to 3% in 2023, according to the DES Ministry.
The ministry noted that while the digital industry has significant potential for foreign revenue generation, Thailand’s dependence on imports for both raw materials and finished digital goods, as well as digital media content, means that growth in exports will likely be accompanied by an increase in imports.
For the manufacturing sector, digital GDP is expected to expand by 5.71% this year, an increase from the 2.75% growth seen in 2023, driven by production increases across all industrial categories.
The two industries with the highest anticipated growth are digital content, expected to grow by 12.6%, and telecommunications, projected to rise by 10%.
Approximately 80% of the growth in digital GDP is attributed to the telecommunications sector, which is up by 1.90%, followed by the digital services sector at 1.36%, and hardware at 1.27%.
DES Minister Prasert Jantararuangtong revealed that these digital GDP figures were compiled by the Office of National Digital Economy and Society Commission. He noted that the government’s investment promotion and Cloud First policy has attracted significant investments from major foreign tech companies like Google and Microsoft, which are investing over 100 billion baht in artificial intelligence and data centers in Thailand this year.
“Two additional major tech companies are expected to invest next year, with an investment amounting to no less than 100 billion baht,” stated Mr. Prasert.
