Thailand

Economy:
GDP (purchasing power parity): $538.6 billion
GDP – per capita (PPP): $8,100
Population: 66,404,688

Language: Thai
The official language of Thailand is Thai, a Kradai language closely related to Lao Shan in Burma, and numerous smaller languages spoken south of the Chinese border. Thailand is also host to several other minority languages, the largest of which is the Lao dialect of Isan spoken in the northeastern provinces. English is a mandatory school subject but the number of fluent speakers remains very low, especially outside the cities.

Internet Penetration
1.57 million domain names registered
16.1 million users online

Paid Search Engines in Thailand:
Google (64.9% market share)
Yahoo (18.8% market share)
Microsoft (9.4 % market share)
Ask (3.9% market share)
AOL (3.0% market share)

About Thailand:
Thailand is a country in Southeast Asia that takes pride in being the only one in the region that had not been under European colonial rule.

This singular distinction is largely attributed to its leaders’ diplomatic prowess in dealing with the colonial powers. Thailand, then known as Siam, exploited the rivalry between the French and the British to serve as a neutral buffer state.
Thailand, however, had its own share of losses in the aftermath of the power struggle, losing some of its territories to Burma and Malaysia as a form of concession.

From a unified kingdom established in the mid-14th Century, Thailand became a constitutional monarchy after a bloodless revolution in 1932. Since then, Thailand has had 17 constitutional changes, with a form of government that ranged from military dictatorship to electoral democracy. Throughout this time, however, all governments have acknowledged one royal lineage, with the present King Bhumibol Adulyadej serving as the longest-reigning monarch in Thai history.

Thailand underwent unprecedented economic growth from 1985 to 1996, with its GDP expanding at an average of 9.4% per year, largely through the export of agricultural/fishery products, textiles and footwear, jewelry items, automobiles, computer units, and electrical appliances. Thailand’s economy is primarily export-driven, with exports contributing about 65% of GDP.
After a decade-long sustained growth, Thailand suffered a major economic reversal in 1997 as one of the most affected countries in the Asian financial crisis. The crisis exposed Thailand’s economic flaws, sending the Baht from a high of 25 to a dollar to an all-time low of 55 to a dollar.

Two years later, after reforms were made, Thailand’s economy was back on its feet, growing by 4.2% and 4.4% in 1999 and 2000, propelled once again by strong exports and the economic pump priming of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who undertook major domestic spending through massive infrastructure projects. In three years, Thailand had regained its economic clout.

Apart from textiles, garments, and electronic items, Thailand is also a major exporter of agricultural products, particularly rice. It is the world’s premier exporter of rice, selling overseas more than 6.5 million metric tons of milled rice yearly.

Thailand has likewise become a major tourist destination in Asia, earning roughly $4.3 billion annually, or about 6% of its GDP. Prostitution and sex tourism are major attractions in Thailand, primarily in Bangkok where tourists from all over the world converge. A study on Thailand’s underground economy by the Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok confirmed that 2.7% of the country’s GDP was contributed by sex tourism.

With established infrastructure, a vibrant free-enterprise economy, investment-friendly policies, and strong export growth, Thailand has totally recovered from the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and 1998. As of 2009, it has amassed a GDP of $627 million, making Thailand the second largest economy in Southeast Asia after Indonesia and one of Asia’s fasting growing newly industrialized countries. In the first quarter of 2010, Thailand’s economy grew by 12% from a year earlier, its best performance in 15 years.

Thailand’s recent economic surge faces a major stumbling block from another political turmoil. Supporters of Thaksin, who was unceremoniously ousted from his position in a coup d’etat in 2006 amidst charges of corruption, are rallying behind the discredited former leader and want incumbent Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajivato to resign. The protests that started in mid-March of 2010 have already escalated into a major tragedy in Bangkok, with scores of people dying and thousands injured in sporadic street fighting and violence that have interrupted business enterprises and prevented tourists from coming to visit.

Government forces cleared the streets in mid-May, but government economists predict a cut of at least 1.5 percentage points from GDP. Despite Vejjajivato’s new vote of confidence in the Parliament in early June, the protesters think their demands for reforms and new elections have not been addressed yet. With this scenario, a return to street violence is still a likely possibility that would continue to adversely affect consumer and business confidence