Growing demand for Thai consumer goods and better economic conditions drove the value of Thailand's border trade to rise by 6% year-on-year to 1.66 trillion baht in the first 11 months of 2024, according to the Commerce Ministry.
Arada Fuengthong, director-general of the Department of Foreign Trade, said border and transit trade in November 2024 was valued at 150 billion baht, a 4% increase year-on-year. Exports accounted for 85.7 billion baht, a 15.3% growth year-on-year, while imports totalled 64.5 billion baht, an 8% decrease, resulting in a trade surplus of 21.2 billion baht.
For the first 11 months of 2024, the value of border and transit trade exports stood at 958 billion baht, a 6.5% increase year-on-year, while the value of border and transit trade imports reached 707 billion, up 5.4%, resulting in a trade surplus of 251 billion baht.
In November, Thailand's border trade with four neighbouring countries amounted to 82.4 billion baht, a 4.6% increase year-on-year, with exports of 51.7 billion baht (+5.7%) and imports of 30.7 billion (+2.8%), resulting in a trade surplus of 21 billion baht.
Malaysia reported the highest trade value with 25.4 billion baht, followed by Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.
The key export products were diesel, refined petroleum products, and concentrated latex.
In the first 11 months of last year, border trade tallied 899 billion baht, a 5.1% increase year-on-year, with exports of 552 billion (+18.1%) and imports of 347 billion (+8.4%), resulting in a trade surplus of 204 billion.
Transit trade to third countries was worth 67.8 billion baht, a 3.2% increase year-on-year in November, with exports worth 34 billion (+33.8%) and imports worth 33.8 billion (-16.1%).
Major destinations included China, Singapore and Vietnam, with key export items were hard disk drives, rubber products, and TSNR rubber blocks.
For the first 11 months, transit trade totalled 766 billion baht, a 7% increase year-on-year, with exports of 406 billion (+11.2%) and imports of 360 billion (+2.6%), resulting in a trade surplus of 46.3 billion.
Mrs Arada said border trade with Myanmar recovered, growing by 6.5% year-on-year to 11.4 billion baht in November, despite ongoing conflicts disrupting trade routes near the Mae Sot border in Tak province.
She said alternative customs checkpoints, such as Ranong province, Mae Sai in Chiang Rai province and Sangkhla Buri in Kanchanaburi province facilitated trade. Key products included diesel, refined petroleum products, beverages, and floor tiles.
"Thailand aims to boost border and transit trade value to 2 trillion baht by 2027, with an average annual growth of 3%. The department focuses on facilitating trade and addressing challenges. If there are no major disruptions, the border and transit trade value is expected to reach 1.84 trillion baht in 2025," Mrs Arada said.
The department is hosting six trade promotions in border provinces and economic corridor provinces this year. The first event is scheduled to take place in Nakhon Ratchasima on Jan 23-26.
