Thai SME Confidence Index Rebounds After Four Months
Thai SME confidence rebounded in June for the first time in four months, driven by government stimulus that boosted orders and production, though businesses still struggle with high energy and raw material costs.
The Small and Medium Enterprise Promotion Office reported that the SME Confidence Index for June 2026 improved for the first time in four months since March, reaching 47.8 points. The recovery was driven by the government's "Thailand Helps Thailand Plus" program, which boosted consumer purchasing power and led to increases in new orders, production volumes, and investment activity. However, the index remains below the normal level of 50 because operators continue to face pressure from elevated energy and raw material costs, limiting profit recovery despite rising sales.
The three-month forward-looking index stands at 52.7, marking the second consecutive month above baseline and reflecting cautiously optimistic business sentiment for the second half of the year, though concerns about costs and employment growth persist. On the debt front, the proportion of SMEs carrying debt fell to 69.1% in the second quarter of 2026 from 71% in the previous quarter, with more businesses relying on formal financing channels and 85.3% meeting their payment obligations on schedule, signaling improved liquidity management.
The office is executing the "Transforming SMEs: Elevating Financial Management with AI" initiative to help operators organize financial data systematically and access credit and capital more easily. For long-term policy, it is preparing the sixth SME Promotion Plan (2027–2031) to guide Thai entrepreneur development over the next five years, alongside a revision of SME definitions—unchanged since 2020—to align with evolving business structures, income, employment, and economic conditions, ensuring government support reaches target groups more effectively.
Despite emerging signs of recovery, officials cautioned that the turnaround remains early-stage and stressed the need to monitor whether sales growth translates into sustained improvements in profitability, job creation, and investment—critical indicators of durable SME sector recovery.
