Deloitte Thailand, an accounting and consulting firm, says the Thai economy is still growing, albeit at a moderate pace, even as politics has emerged as a new threat.
Optimism remains intact after the 2011 floods, thanks to confidence among foreign investors.
Subhasakdi Krishnamra, a managing partner of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Jaiyos (Deloitte Thailand), said that as the world economic leaders _ the US, China, Japan and Europe _ remain mired in a slump, Asia is likely to continue suffering from regional currency fluctuations.
''To sum up, the world economic situation is highly likely to remain unchanged for a while,'' he said.
Though Thailand has endured natural disasters and political problems, the economy has continued to grow, partly due to foreign investor confidence in the country's strong competitiveness relative to neighbours.
''As a matter of fact, Thailand successfully drew a large number of external investors and interested entrepreneurs to initiate a lot of new business ventures as well as mergers,'' said Mr Subhasakdi.
Thailand serves as an excellent base for expansion into regional countries as firms prepare for the Asean Economic Community (AEC) in late 2015. This advantage should assure continued growth amid multiple challenges.
''Thailand should come up with better policies on investment to increase its own competitiveness compared with other rising neighbouring countries,'' said Mr Subhasakdi.
In line with the relatively strong private sector, Deloitte Thailand recorded growth of 10% in its 2013 accounting year ended June 1, after similar growth last year.
Half its income came from auditing services, wherein advisory service saw 20% growth. The latter came from risk management, business continuity management and data-loss prevention.
Deloitte is studying the possibility of expanding into Cambodia and Laos after a Myanmar office opened last year.
''The most important thing is to ensure we have a team of experts to serve clients' businesses and protect their benefits,'' said Mr Subhasakdi.