Key facts
- Thailand's economy grew 1.9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026.
- This represents a slowdown from 2.8% growth in the first quarter.
- The growth exceeded market expectations of 1.7%.
- Private consumption and government spending saw softer increases.
- Exports and imports both experienced sharp accelerations.
- Weak tourism and high energy prices contributed to the slowdown.
Thailand's economy experienced a slowdown in the second quarter of 2026, with Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growing by 1.9% year-on-year. This marks a deceleration from the 2.8% growth recorded in the first quarter and represents the weakest expansion since the third quarter of 2025. Despite surpassing market forecasts of 1.7%, the subdued growth was primarily attributed to a drag on private consumption, which rose by 1.9% compared to 3.3% in the prior quarter. Higher energy prices are believed to have rippled through costs, making households more cautious about spending.
Government spending also saw a softer increase of 0.2%, down from 3.4% in Q1, while investment grew by 9.1%, a slight decrease from 9.9%. On the trade front, both exports and imports experienced sharp accelerations, with exports growing 12.5% and imports 24.2%. However, this boost was insufficient to offset the weakness in domestic demand.
Tourism, a critical component of Thailand's economy, provided limited relief, with foreign arrivals down 3.2% year-on-year as of August 1, 2026. Economists also pointed to long-term constraints such as an ageing population, weak productivity, skills mismatches, and high household debt, which continue to limit both investment and domestic consumption.