Interest payments (% of expense) in Thailand
Thailand: Interest payments (% of expense) was 5.5% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Interest payments in Thailand, 1972–2023
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
Thailand recorded 5.5% for interest payments in 2023.
That represents a change of down 4.9% on the previous year and down 1.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in Thailand peaked at 19.7% in 1988 and was at its lowest, 1.1%, in 1998.
That places Thailand 87th out of 152 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Interest payments (% of expense) in Thailand, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 10.4% | — |
| 1973 | 10.6% | +1.8% |
| 1974 | 11.0% | +3.4% |
| 1975 | 9.8% | -10.9% |
| 1976 | 7.9% | -19.5% |
| 1977 | 8.4% | +7.2% |
| 1978 | 8.4% | -1.0% |
| 1979 | 9.5% | +13.2% |
| 1980 | 9.5% | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 11.8% | +24.1% |
| 1982 | 12.1% | +2.3% |
| 1983 | 15.0% | +23.9% |
| 1984 | 15.3% | +2.4% |
| 1985 | 17.1% | +11.6% |
| 1986 | 18.9% | +10.6% |
| 1987 | 19.1% | +0.7% |
| 1988 | 19.7% | +3.1% |
| 1989 | 19.0% | -3.4% |
| 1990 | 15.6% | -17.6% |
| 1991 | 12.1% | -22.7% |
| 1992 | 9.1% | -24.7% |
| 1993 | 6.8% | -25.1% |
| 1994 | 5.2% | -24.4% |
| 1995 | 3.1% | -40.4% |
| 1996 | 2.0% | -36.3% |
| 1997 | 2.5% | +26.0% |
| 1998 | 1.1% | -54.5% |
| 1999 | 4.8% | +325.5% |
| 2000 | 8.5% | +78.2% |
| 2001 | 7.6% | -11.0% |
| 2002 | 6.1% | -18.8% |
| 2003 | 7.2% | +17.2% |
| 2004 | 7.9% | +9.7% |
| 2005 | 7.8% | -1.4% |
| 2006 | 8.9% | +14.4% |
| 2007 | 6.2% | -30.3% |
| 2008 | 5.4% | -12.7% |
| 2009 | 5.5% | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 6.7% | +22.2% |
| 2011 | 6.1% | -9.4% |
| 2012 | 6.1% | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 5.6% | -8.4% |
| 2014 | 5.5% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 5.1% | -8.1% |
| 2016 | 4.2% | -17.0% |
| 2017 | 5.3% | +24.9% |
| 2018 | 5.3% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 5.4% | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 4.2% | -21.0% |
| 2021 | 4.9% | +15.7% |
| 2022 | 5.8% | +18.0% |
| 2023 | 5.5% | -4.9% |
Thailand compared with similar countries
- Thailand's 5.5% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 8.8%, 63% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Thailand's 5.5% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.0%, 1.8× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Interest payments (% of expense) in Thailand changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | +325.5% | 1.1% | 4.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 9.5% | 7.9% | 11.0% | 8 |
| 1980s | 15.7% | 9.5% | 19.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.2% | 1.1% | 15.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.1% | 5.4% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.5% | 4.2% | 6.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.1% | 4.2% | 5.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Thailand
More public sector data for Thailand
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Arms imports 33.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 1.02 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -74.91 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is interest payments in Thailand?
- Interest payments in Thailand was 5.5% in 2023, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest payments recorded in Thailand?
- The highest recorded value was 19.7% in 1988.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in Thailand?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.1% in 1998.
- How does Thailand rank for interest payments?
- Thailand ranks 87th out of 152 countries with data for 2023.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in Thailand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Thailand data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Interest payments (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Interest payments include interest payments on government debt (including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments) to domestic and foreign residents. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.