NEW PUBLICATION SHINES A SPOTLIGHT ON THAILAND 2016 Oxford Business Group launches 2016 country report

Tuesday 14 June 2016 14:48
Photo caption: The cover of The Report: Thailand 2016 Government-led initiatives to push policies and regulations that will enhance regional competitiveness in Thailand are analysed in a new report produced by the global publishing, research and consultancy firm Oxford Business Group (OBG).

The Report: Thailand 2016 considers the development of large-scale infrastructure projects in a bid to enhance regional connectivity. The global publishing, research and consultancy firm's report also explores the country's attempts to take advantage of its recovering tourism sector, which has benefited from liberalised trade barriers, increasing cross-border business travel.

Coverage includes a special chapter tracking the emergence and expansion of Thailand as a sufficiency economy, differing from a shorter-term, shareholder-centric approach. The publication looks, in particular, at how the sustainability approach has been implemented in the country's agricultural, manufacturing and energy sectors.

The Report: Thailand 2016 contains an in-depth interview with Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, together with a detailed, sector-by-sector guide for investors. It also features a wide range of contributions from other leading representatives including Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand; Julie Bishop, Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs; Veerathai Santipraphob, Governor of Bank of Thailand; Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister of Russia and Kasem Watanachai, Privy Councilor.

Andrew Jeffreys, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of OBG, said that as the country continues its transition from an agricultural to a manufacturing economy, the government is planning to move further up the value chain by investing in knowledge-based and research and development-based industries.

"The government targets to make domestic research and development 1-2% of GDP with a private/public sector ratio of 70:30 by 2021," he said. "This aligns well with its ambition of differentiation from its peers in a bit to compete on the global and international stage."

OBG's Managing Editor for Asia, Paulius Kuncinas added that Thailand's push to spread the development of value-added production bases, known as super clusters, will further add to the country's business-friendly environment.

"Thailand's establishment of 10 special economic zones will facilitate cross-border supply chains, benefitting the automotive sector with further integration into ASEAN," he said. "As our report suggests, this move will set the scene for a wave of investment across a host of critical production bases in the country."

The Report: Thailand 2016 marks the culmination of more than six months of field research by a team of analysts from Oxford Business Group. The publication assesses trends and developments across the economy, including macroeconomics, infrastructure, banking and other sectoral developments.