Thailand’s business landscape has seen a significant rise in new registrations in March, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce. The Department of Business Development (DBD) has reported that approximately 9,200 new businesses were registered in the country last month, which marks an 8% increase from February and a 28% increase from the same period last year.
Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit revealed that the registered capital of these new businesses was valued at nearly 300 billion baht. The top three industries that dominated new business registrations were real estate, general building construction, and restaurants.
However, March was also marked by the closure of approximately 1,100 businesses, which is a significant increase of 27% from February and a 19% increase from March 2022. The businesses that were most affected by closure were general building construction, real estate, and restaurants.
For Q1 2023, there were approximately 26,000 new business registrations, which is a substantial 67% increase from the previous quarter and a 17% increase from the same period last year. The registered capital for these new businesses was valued at almost 340 billion baht, with general building construction, real estate, and restaurants being the top three industries.
During the same period, around 3,300 businesses had to close, which represents a 69% decrease from the previous quarter but a 26% increase from the same period last year. The registered capital value for these closures was nearly 30 billion baht.
As of March 31, there were approximately 866,000 businesses operating in Thailand, with a combined capital value of 21.2 trillion baht. Private limited companies accounted for 76.51% of these businesses, while limited partnerships accounted for 23.33%, and public limited companies accounted for just 0.16%.
The DBD predicts that new business registrations will continue to rise in the coming months, with estimates suggesting around 40,000-42,000 new registrations in the first half of 2023 and around 72,000-77,000 new registrations throughout the year.