New vehicle sales in Thailand increased by almost 26% to 59,809 units in August 2026, up from 47,622 units a year earlier, according to the latest data released by the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI). The market was driven higher by continued strong demand for battery electric vehicles (BEVs), sales of which surged by 113% year-on-year to 19,720 units last month, while sales of internal combustion engine (ICE) passenger vehicles declined by 17% to 7,973 units.
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The overall Thai domestic vehicle market continued to recover last month from weak year-earlier volumes, despite a slowdown in economic growth in the country in recent months. The latest government data show that GDP growth slowed to 1.9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026, down from 2.8% in the first quarter, reflecting significantly weaker domestic consumption.
In the first eight months of 2026, Thailand’s domestic vehicle market expanded by over 15% to 465,970 units, from 399,420 units a year earlier. BEV sales surged by 106% to 149,130 units in this period, with significant volumes still imported as built-up units from China.
The Thai government is coming under increasing pressure to provide more support for internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. Sales of pickup trucks, which have a high local content and support significant numbers of local jobs, are estimated to have declined slightly to around 96,500 units year-to-date, following three years of much sharper declines – from 388,000 units in 2022 to 144,000 units in 2025.
The government last month said it planned to provide additional tax incentives for automakers planning to establish new production facilities in Thailand, to encourage greater use of locally sourced parts and raw materials.
Vehicle production in the country increased by more than 1% to 959,711 vehicles in the first eight months of the year, despite a 6% drop in exports to 565,040 units – reflecting a sharp decline in shipments of vehicles to the Middle East.
The FTI expects vehicle production in the country to reach 1.45 million units in 2026, including 550,000 for sale domestically and 900,000 for export. GlobalData is forecasting light vehicle sales to rise by 12% to 694,000 units this year, after growing by 9% to 618,000 units in 2025, followed by a 2% rise to 709,000 units in 2027.
