Foreign Direct Investment and Export Performance in Thailand

This research project aims to further shed light on the influences of FDI on firm-level export outcomes in Thailand. The goals of this paper are to identify the factors, particularly those related to FDI, that determine firms’ export orientation, and to make policy recommendations with regard to facilitating MNCs export spillovers. Findings from this research indicate that firms’ decisions to export are heavily influenced by the governments’ export promotion policies and the presence of foreign direct investors. Secondary findings further suggest that the intensity of a firm’s exports is increasing in the percentage of foreign ownership in the domestic firms.