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As the in 2023, Thailand offers a diverse range of activities for all age groups. From basking in the sun at its renowned beaches, seeking serenity at its temples, indulging in retail therapy at bustling night markets, or savouring the exquisite umami flavours by its food vendors, Thailand has it all. For all its charms, the Thai stock market has not received similar love from Singapore investors. Progressing from a low-income to an upper middle-income country over the last four decades, Thailand not only offers high growth potential but also diversification opportunities beyond our local market. To bridge this gap, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) now offers Thai Singapore Depository Receipts (SDRs), enabling investors easier access to the Thai stock market. On 1 April 2024, 5 new blue-chip Thai SDRs will be launched, bringing the total number of Thai SDRs traded on the SGX to 8. With over 71 million people, Thailand boasts the second-largest economy in Southeast Asia. Growth in the country is underpinned by an expanding urban middle class population that is readily embracing emerging digital and lifestyle trends. Thailand also has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the world at (in 2023), highlighting the strong labour market. On the economic front, Thailand’s export-dependent economy grew , with a gross domestic product (GDP) value of 17.9 trillion baht (or US$513 billion). This year, the Thai economy is projected to grow by 2.8%. Thailand’s economy comprises three main sectors: Services, Industry, and Agriculture. Firstly, its Services sector employs around half of the workforce and generates approximately of the country’s GDP. It is led by growth in the private consumption and export of services – boosted by international travel in 2023. Its Industrial sector contributes approximately 35% to the country’s GDP and provides employment to over a fifth of its workforce. Thailand serves as an assembly hub for international car brands like BMW, Ford, Honda, and Toyota, for both internal combustion vehicles and, recently, electric vehicles. It also has an expanding computing industry, with the boom of data centres led by the country’s rapid growth of its digital economy. Thailand’s Agriculture sector accounts for around of its GDP but employs around of the country’s labour force. Renowned as the world’s largest rubber exporter and second-biggest rice exporter, Thailand is also a major exporter of tapioca products, frozen shrimp, canned tuna, and canned pineapple. With innovation disrupting many of the old industries, the Thai government launched the “Thailand 4.0” economic model—a 20-year strategic plan to address the country’s productivity stagnation and reduce middle-income disparity. 10 target sectors that will serve as the country’s new and sustainable growth engines. Labelled S-Curve sectors, companies within these sectors typically undergo cycles of growth and stagnation – and are primed for innovation and digitalisation. Established in 1962, the Thai stock exchange offers two markets: the mainboard, SET, and the Market for Alternative Investment (or MAI) for small and medium-sized enterprises (similar to the Catalist on the SGX). The SET has a market capitalisation of around 17 trillion baht (or S$630 billion), with more than 600 companies currently listed on the exchange. It is the second-largest in ASEAN after Singapore. The two popular benchmarks used to track the performance of the SET are the SET50 and SET100, which consist of the biggest 50 and 100 companies (by market capitalisation), respectively. To get a sense of some of the companies listed in Thailand, here are the top 15 listed companies by market capitalisation: Source: CompaniesMarketCap (As of 28 March 2024) There are three types of shares available on the SET: local shares, foreign shares, and Non-Voting Depository Receipt (NVDR). Generally, Singapore investors who wish to invest in Thai stocks have to buy the Thai-listed NVDRs. While they carry the same prices and benefits as the underlying ordinary shares, they have no voting rights. The NVDRs have a suffix “-R” at the end of the stock symbol to differentiate between the local shares. Source: It’s important to note that not all brokerage firms in Singapore offer direct access to the Thai market. Furthermore, you will likely incur higher trading and commission fees as well as custodian fees when investing in overseas-listed stocks. Alternatively, you can choose to invest in Thai stocks through the recently introduced Singapore Depository Receipts (SDRs) on the SGX. It is the same as buying the underlying stocks, or in this case, the Thai NVDRs, which give you the same price and benefits as the underlying shares but without the voting rights. One of the main advantages of the Thai SDRs is that the trading costs could be at least 30% lower than buying the NVDRs. Unlike investing directly in Thai-listed NVDRs, the Thai SDRs are traded and settled in Singapore dollars. This eliminates any foreign exchange conversion fees or custody charges that you may incur when trading NVDRs directly. Another benefit of the Thai SDRs is that you get to trade Thai stocks on the same brokerage platform and with the same familiarity as SGX-listed stocks. Here’s a list of the available securities that are tradeable through SGX.   To learn more about the initial batch of Thai SDRs, you can visit the for more information and resources. It's free! Don't miss out on the latest financial market movements. 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