Foreign arrivals in Thailand estimated at 21 million in 2012

BANGKOK, November 20 (TNA) - TMB Analytics has estimated that the number of international visitors to Thailand should reach as many as 21 million at the end of this year, generating nearly one trillion baht of tourism-related revenues. During the first 10 months of this year, there are some 17.7 million international tourists visited Thailand, a 9.7 per cent year-on-year increase, with most of them, or about 10 million or 56.4 per cent, coming from East Asia and Southeast Asia. Over 4.3 million international visitors came from Europe, mostly from the countries indirectly affected by the ongoing European economic crisis, including Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Russia. The TMB Bank's research center predicted that the number of international visitors to Thailand should total some 21 million this year if there was not any untoward incident, earning the Kingdom about 920 billion baht tourism-related revenues, with the lion’s share coming from the hotel and accommodation sectors accounting for about 280 billion baht. According to the TMB Analytics, apart from Bangkok, Thai provinces which are likely to directly benefit from tourism include Chon Buri, Phuket, Surat Thani, Chiang Mai, Krabi and Songkhla. The TMB Bank's research center projected that the number of international visitors should further expand by 7 per cent to 22.5 million in 2013, expected to generate some 2 trillion baht tourism-related revenues. The TMB Analytics suggested that the Thai government implement more measures and strategies to stimulate domestic tourism and spending of international visitors. (TNA)