Thailand Watch: Solid 1Q26 GDP driven by investment, ahead of war impact

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Thailand Watch: Solid 1Q26 GDP driven by investment, ahead of war impact

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Thailand Watch

Solid 1Q26 GDP driven by investment,

ahead of war impact

Calm before the storm 18 May 2026

Thailand’s GDP expanded in 1Q26, growing by +2.8% YoY and +0.7% QoQ SA, compared GEM Economics

with +2.5% YoY in 4Q25. On the demand side, growth was supported by resilient Asia | Thailand

consumption in 1Q26, ahead of the full impact from rising energy prices, as well as Pipat Luengnaruemitchai

stronger investment. On the supply side, the manufacturing and agricultural sectors Emerging Asia Economist

expanded, while service-related activities particularly tourism-related activities, Kiatnakin+66 2 305Phatra9221 Securities

wholesale and retail trade, as well as construction continued to hold up well. pipat.luen@kkpfg.com

Kenneth Newell

Tourism and construction helped service sector EconomistKiatnakin Phatra Securities

The service sector expanded by +3.6% YoY, up slightly from +3.5% YoY in 4Q25. Key kenneth.dona@kkpfg.com

contributors to service sector growth were accommodation and food services (+2.2% Burakorn Tipayasakulchai

YoY) and transportation (+3.6% YoY), reflecting the lagged impact of the war and rising EconomistKiatnakin Phatra Securities

energy prices on economic activities. Construction activity remained strong, although burakorn.tipa@kkpfg.com

growth slowed from the previous quarter, recording +6.2% YoY. Both private

construction (+4.9% YoY) and public construction (+8.3% YoY) remained in positive

territory. A rebound in state enterprise construction helped to support investment.

Mixed trend within consumption components

Private consumption rose by +3.2%, driven by consumption of both semi-durable and