ALTHOUGH the Thai economy is still buffeted by high cost of living while consumer confidence has not yet fully recovered, spending by Thais has not completely disappeared just shifted to a desire to “buy what’s necessary and offers better value,” PPTVHD36 said today (Aug.10).
Mr. Athit Rujirawat, chief executive officer of Krungsri Consumer, said their data shows that from January to June 2026, credit card spending totalled 196.7 billion baht, a 3% increase year-on-year.
Meanwhile, new loan disbursements reached 47.2 billion baht, up 4%.
With “essential items” still dominating spending the five categories with highest credit card spending include:
– Insurance;
– Supermarkets and convenience stores;
– Petrol pumps;
– Online platforms;
– Home furnishings and household goods.
This shows that with consumers currently having to be cautious about income and the cost of living, the focus is on daily expenses with fuel, food, daily necessities, and insurance remaining key categories. Meanwhile, lifestyle spending is increasingly prioritised based on necessity and value.
Online shopping topped the list of categories showing highest growth rates as follows:
– Online platforms: up 16%;
– Mutual funds: up 14%;
– Beauty and cosmetics: up 12%;
– Sports and recreation: up 10%;
– Petrol pumps: up 7%.
This reflects that Thais are not spending extravagantly, but with purchasing power suppressed some spending habits are changing. Online shopping has become commonplace, while spending on health, beauty, sports, and recreation continues to receive attention.
Fashion and cosmetics are being chosen more cautiously
Krungsri Consumer’s data shows that spending in the fashion and cosmetics categories is slowing down amidst economic uncertainty. Consumers have not stopped spending on all lifestyle products but are re-prioritising.
To put it simply, it is not about “not buying” but rather “buying what they feel is more worthwhile.”
When cash is tight, installment plans play a more significant role
Another interesting behaviour is that consumers are increasingly opting to choose installment payments to increase flexibility in managing liquidity, especially for spending in categories such as travel, health and beauty, and pet clinics.
This behaviour reflects that, in times when income and expenses must be managed cautiously, some consumers are not cancelling spending but are choosing to spread the burden out over the months.
However, installment payments mean using future income in the present, making it a behaviour that needs to be monitored alongside household debt and the ability to repay debt.
Consumer loan market is not stagnant
In the first half of the year, there were 284,100 new customer accounts, an increase of 4%.
Credit card spending totalled 196.7 billion baht, an increase of 3%.
New loan disbursements totalled 47.2 billion baht, an increase of 4%.
Meanwhile, outstanding loans stood at 134.2 billion baht, a decrease of 1%.
Regarding loan quality, the ratio of debt overdue for more than 90 days was 1.1% for credit cards and 1.9% for personal loans.
Looking ahead to the second half of the year, Krungsri Consumer sees continued uncertainty in the Thai economy due to the high cost of living and the fact that consumer confidence has not yet fully recovered. Targets for 2026 are as follows:
– 627,000 new customer accounts (+9%)
– 420 billion baht in credit card spending (+6%)
– 98 billion baht in new loans (+4%)
– 147 billion baht in outstanding loans (+3%)
Therefore, the key is not just whether “Thais will spend more” but how they will choose to spend the money they have. In an uncertain economy, consumer behaviour may not have shifted from “spending” to “not spending,” but rather from “spending on their desires” to “spending on necessities, value for money, health, experiences, and their future.”
CAPTION:
Representative images of credit card spending. Above photo – PPTVHD36, Front Page – Rupixen on Unsplash
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