1. Overview of Thailand’s Economy

Thailand is one of many successful development stories which have been cited widely (World Bank, 2015). Thailand has been able to achieve remarkable and outstanding feats to become how it is today, moving from a low-income economy to an upper-middle-income economy (World Bank, 2015).

Before the effects of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) in 2008-2009 and the flood of 2011, Thailand’s growth rate was a moderate 5% (World Bank, 2015). Since then, Thailand has achieved a steady growth rate of 1.8% in 2013 (World Bank, 2015), depending primarily on the export of industrial and agricultural goods, such as electronics, processed foods and so on (CIA, 2015).

Unemployment is at only 1% of the total workforce, one of the lowest in the world. However, this can cause pressure on companies, as they will have difficulty with payment schemes for wages and salaries (CIA, 2015). Additionally, although unemployment is low, benefits have not been shared equally, resulting in poverty remaining as a common phenomenon (World Bank, 2015). As a result, in 2013, the government has implemented a 300 baht ($10) minimum wage policy and tax reforms to support low/middle-income earners (CIA, 2015).

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Thailand has a well-developed infrastructure, a free market economy, primarily pro-investment policies and a strong export industry, attracting approximately 2.5 million migrant workers from neighboring countries (CIA, 2015).