Thai baht in the context of "Bi-metallic coin"

The 1997 Asian financial crisis gripped much of East and Southeast Asia during the late 1990s. The crisis began in Thailand in July 1997 before spreading to several other countries with a ripple effect, raising fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion. However, the recovery in 1998–1999 was rapid, and worries of a meltdown quickly subsided.

Originating in Thailand, where it was known as the Tom Yum Kung crisis (Thai: วิกฤตต้มยำกุ้ง) on 2 July, it followed the financial collapse of the Thai baht after the Thai government was forced to float the baht due to lack of foreign currency to support its currency peg to the U.S. dollar. Capital flight ensued almost immediately, beginning an international chain reaction. At the time, Thailand had acquired a burden of foreign debt. As the crisis spread, other Southeast Asian countries and later Japan and South Korea saw slumping currencies, devalued stock markets and other asset prices, and a precipitous rise in private debt. Foreign debt-to-GDP ratios rose from 100% to 167% in the four large Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) economies in 1993–1996, then shot up beyond 180% during the worst of the crisis. In South Korea, the ratios rose from 13% to 21% and then as high as 40%, while the other northern newly industrialized countries fared much better. Only in Thailand and South Korea did debt service-to-exports ratios rise.

The economy of Thailand is dependent on exports, which accounted for about 58 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2021. Thailand itself is a newly industrialized country, with a GDP of 17.922 trillion baht (US$514.8 billion) in 2023, the 9th largest economy in Asia. As of 2018, Thailand has an average inflation of 1.06% and an account surplus of 7.5% of the country's GDP. Its currency, the baht, is ranked as the tenth most frequently used world payment currency in 2017.

The industrial and service sectors are the main sectors in the Thai gross domestic product, with the former accounting for 39.2 percent of GDP. Thailand's agricultural sector produces 8.4 percent of GDP—lower than the trade and logistics and communication sectors, which account for 13.4 percent and 9.8 percent of GDP respectively. The construction and mining sector adds 4.3 percent to the country's gross domestic product. Other service sectors (including the financial, education, and hotel and restaurant sectors) account for 24.9 percent of the country's GDP. Telecommunications and trade in services are emerging as centers of industrial expansion and economic competitiveness.

Nakhon Ratchasima (Thai: นครราชสีมา, pronounced [ná(ʔ).kʰɔ̄ːn râːt.tɕʰā.sǐː.māː]; Northeastern Thai: นครราชสีมา, pronounced [nà(ʔ).kʰɔ̂ːn lâːt.sā.sǐː.mâː], often called Khorat (Thai: โคราช, pronounced [kʰōː.râːt]; Northeastern Thai: โคราช, pronounced [kʰôː.lâːt]) (alternate spelling Korat) is one of Thailand's seventy-six provinces (changwat) and lies in lower northeastern Thailand also called Isan. At 20,736 square kilometres (8,006 sq mi) it is the country's second largest province by area, has a population of approximately 2.6 million, and generates about 250 billion baht in GDP, the highest in Isan. Neighbouring provinces are (clockwise, from north) Chaiyaphum, Khon Kaen, Buriram, Sa Kaeo, Prachinburi, Nakhon Nayok, Saraburi, and Lopburi.

The capital of the province is the city of Nakhon Ratchasima in Mueang Nakhon Ratchasima district, also called Khorat.

The Department of Corrections (Thai: กรมราชทัณฑ์, RTGS: krom ratchathan) is an agency of the Thai Ministry of Justice. Its mission is to keep prisoners in custody and rehabilitate them. Its headquarters is in Suanyai Sub-district, Mueang Nonthaburi District, Nonthaburi Province. As of 2020, Police Colonel Suchart Wongananchai is director-general of the department. Its FY2019 budget was 13,430 million baht.