Total export value of computers and parts in 1998 was approximately Baht 316,000 million or about 14.5 per cent of the country's total exports for that year. With the exception of 1992 and 1993, the rate of growth of computer exports has been over 20 per cent a year. Only the hardware segment of the industry is involved in export. The other two segments, on the other hand, import for domestic consumption since local manufacturing is still limited.
Most manufacturers are in fact investment projects launched by the multinational corporations.
And because of the relatively small size of the domestic computer market, primary emphasis has been on export. Exports of computers and parts in 1998 increased by 39 per cent over the previous year. In terms of the US dollar, however, the rise was only about 6.3 per cent due to a drop in value of the Thai baht by about 32 per cent. Computer parts made up about 76 per cent of total value of computer exports, the rest being complete-set computers. Major export markets were the US, Singapore and the EU, taking in 27.5 per cent, 27.1 per cent and 19.5 per cent of total value of computer exports respectively.