Thailand real estate investments drop 26.2% to USD252m in Q1

Blame it on uncertainties from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Thailand saw lacklustre investment activity in Q1 as investments fell by 26.2% YoY and 12.6% QoQ to USD252m. 

Colliers says this is mainly due to the economy’s uneven recovery from the impact of Covid-19 and uncertainty stemming from the war in Ukraine. Nonetheless the hotel and industrial sectors showed signs of expanding. 

Here’s more from Colliers:

Investments in the hotel and industrial sectors remained strong in Q1 as the government’s “Test-and-Go” policy encouraged foreign investors and travellers to resume travel to Thailand. REITs in particular showed significant interest in the market with SPRIME REIT alone acquiring three new assets - Singha complex (Office), Suntowers (Retail) and Suntowers (Storage) - worth a combined USD185 million. Demand for data centres also grew during the quarter with the segment registering transactions worth USD16 million.

It is our view that Thailand’s investment market will continue to grow despite the economic uncertainty for a number of reasons. For one, investors in the hotel sector have come to view this as the right time to find reasonably priced assets. 

Secondly, Covid-19 has motivated residential developers to explore new business opportunities, which should push transaction numbers higher. Additionally, the industrial sector is now an emerging market with demand trending upwards, particularly for assets such as data centres, cold storage units, warehouses and fulfilment centres.