Thailand readies strategy to prosper in Trump era

Thailand will explore offering fresh incentives to attract global companies looking to minimise the hit from a US-China trade war that is expected to intensify under a Donald Trump presidency, says Commerce Minister Pichai Naripthaphan.
The country expects to see a rush of new investments in the coming years from China, the US and other countries which see Thailand as a neutral and friendly player in global geopolitics, Mr Pichai Naripthaphan told Bloomberg News on Wednesday.
“Trump’s win will be beneficial for Thailand, because Republicans are pro-business and the US-China trade war will continue and result in more investments from both countries into Thailand,” he said.
“Everybody wants to invest in Thailand and use us as a manufacturing hub for exports to other countries.”
Trump has threatened to ramp up the trade contest with China by slapping steep tariffs on imports, moves that could upend global trade. Southeast Asian countries were among the biggest beneficiaries of the US-China trade war during Trump’s first term in office as companies relocated businesses from China to the region to circumvent punitive tariffs and trade curbs.
A longtime manufacturing powerhouse for automobiles and electronics, Thailand has in recent months ramped up efforts to attract investment from global companies to bolster growth from an average of less than 2% under a decade of military-backed rule.
Mr Pichai said last month that the chip-designing company Nvidia would announce investment plans in December, joining the Google parent Alphabet and Microsoft as the country becomes a hot spot for building AI data centres and electronic components manufacturing.
US companies such as Seagate and Western Digital are also looking to ramp up investment in Thai operations, while Hewlett Packard is keen to relocate some production to the country, Mr Pichai said.
As the oldest US ally in Asia, Thailand has also been known to take a neutral stance amid escalating geopolitical tension. Mr Pichai said this positioning would give the country more edge, especially after the US presidential election.
“The US, China, India, Russia see us as a friend. We don’t have to choose anyone, and that makes us attractive for investments because we’re seen as safe,” said the minister, who was in China earlier this week to court investors.
“Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Iran — they all think we’re a friend. Our benefits from this position will help Thailand’s economy grow.”
A number of foreign companies and business groups have urged the Ministry of Commerce to explore more incentives to facilitate investments, Mr Pichai said.
Thailand has seen a surge in new investment proposals, including from domestic companies, and commitments may reach as high as 1 trillion baht this year, he said.
The Board of Investment recently reported a 42% jump in the value of investment proposals in the first nine months of this year to 723 billion baht, the highest since 2015. A majority of the new investments are in electronics and data centres, and proposed by mostly by US and Chinese companies, it said.