Thailand Post

Thailand Post is Thailand's national postal operator and a state enterprise responsible for domestic and international mail, parcel delivery, express services, and logistics. The modern company was created in 2003 when the former Communications Authority of Thailand was divided into Thailand Post and CAT Telecom. Although the corporate entity dates from that restructuring, its institutional history reaches back to the establishment of Siam's Post and Telegraph Office in 1883 during the reign of King Chulalongkorn, also known as Rama V. Before an organized national postal system existed, communications between Bangkok, provincial authorities, and royal or administrative outposts were carried by heralds, messengers, and fast boats. International correspondence was commonly transported by steamship or diplomatic pouch through neighboring colonial postal systems. A British Consular Post Office operated in Bangkok from 1858 to 1885, serving expatriate merchants and missionaries. Siam began operating its own international postal service after joining the Universal Postal Union in 1885, and the country issued its first postage stamp on 4 August 1883. The early Post and Telegraph Office expanded its remit in 1898 after being merged with the Telegraph Department, becoming the Department of Mail and Telegraph. That department was later replaced in 1977 by the government-owned Communications Authority of Thailand, which combined postal and telecommunications responsibilities. The 2003 separation created Thailand Post as the dedicated postal enterprise and CAT Telecom as the telecommunications successor. Thailand Post provides ordinary letter mail, registered mail, parcels, express delivery, international postal services, and logistics support. EMS is its principal express-mail offering. Its network has also supported the growth of Thai electronic commerce by providing fulfillment, parcel transportation, and delivery services for individuals, merchants, and online sellers. In the late 2010s, the company reported rising revenue and profitability as parcel volumes and e-commerce activity grew. The organization operates a nationwide physical network consisting of post offices, licensed post-office outlets, and logistics centers. It has invested in automated sorting and related infrastructure to improve throughput and reduce manual processing. In 2018, it allocated funding for automated sorting centers in Chonburi Province and Wang Noi District in Ayutthaya Province, with an ambition to automate postal, delivery, and selected back-office processes. Thailand Post remains a public-service institution as well as a commercial operator, combining universal postal access with express, parcel, and logistics businesses.

Thailand's postal history developed from a limited premodern communications system into a nationwide public utility. Before the creation of a formal postal administration, messages between Bangkok and provincial locations were carried by government messengers, heralds, and boats. The Ministry of Interior maintained travel schedules for official communications, but delivery times could extend to many days. International correspondence was generally transported by steamboat or passed through foreign postal systems operating in the region. One early recorded letter from Bangkok dates to 1836, when American missionary Dan Beach Bradley sent a letter abroad in a stampless cover. Foreign residents and commercial communities later increased demand for a more dependable service. In 1858, Great Britain established a British Consular Post Office in Bangkok following the Bowring Treaty of 1855. That office served expatriates and international commercial traffic, but it was not a national Siamese postal administration. The Siamese state established the Post and Telegraph Office in 1883. The organization issued the country's first postage stamp on 4 August of that year and began building a domestic and international postal network. On 1 July 1885, Siam joined the Universal Postal Union and assumed responsibility for its own international postal exchanges. The first post office was located in a large building near the Chao Phraya River, north of the Ong-Ang Canal, in Bangkok. In 1898, the postal organization was combined with the Telegraph Department and renamed the Department of Mail and Telegraph. For much of the twentieth century, the postal and telegraph functions remained associated with the state communications administration. In 1977, the Department of Mail and Telegraph was abolished and its responsibilities were transferred to the Communications Authority of Thailand, a government-owned enterprise that also handled telecommunications. A major institutional change occurred in 2003, when the government separated the Communications Authority of Thailand into two successor companies. Thailand Post became the dedicated postal enterprise, while CAT Telecom assumed the telecommunications role. Thailand Post therefore combines a modern corporate history beginning in 2003 with a postal institutional lineage extending back to 1883. After its creation, Thailand Post continued to operate the country's broad postal access network while expanding beyond traditional letters. Its service portfolio included ordinary mail, registered mail, parcels, EMS express delivery, international mail, and logistics. The rise of online retail and cross-border electronic commerce increased the importance of parcel transportation and fulfillment. In the late 2010s, the company reported substantial increases in revenue and profit and identified e-commerce as a principal growth driver. The enterprise also invested in physical and technological capacity. Reported infrastructure included 19 logistics centers, approximately 1,300 post offices, and thousands of licensed post-office outlets. In 2018, Thailand Post announced a 10-billion-baht investment in automated sorting centers in Chonburi and Ayutthaya, with a goal of broad automation across sorting, delivery, and administrative processes by 2021. These investments reflected the transition from a primarily letter-based public service to a nationwide parcel and logistics platform while retaining the universal-service role associated with the national post.

• 2018

  Automated sorting infrastructure announced

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Thailand Post allocated funding for automated sorting centers in Chonburi and Wang Noi, Ayutthaya, as part of a planned modernization of postal and logistics operations.

• 2003

  Thailand Post becomes a separate state enterprise

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  The Communications Authority of Thailand was divided into Thailand Post and CAT Telecom. Thailand Post became the dedicated national postal enterprise.

• 1977

  Communications Authority of Thailand assumes postal responsibilities

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  The Department of Mail and Telegraph was abolished, and postal and telegraph operations were transferred to the newly established government-owned Communications Authority of Thailand.

• 1898

  Postal and telegraph functions are combined

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  The Post and Telegraph Office merged with the Telegraph Department and became the Department of Mail and Telegraph.

• 1885

  Siam joins the Universal Postal Union

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Siam joined the Universal Postal Union and began operating its own international postal exchanges, ending the period in which much Bangkok mail was routed through foreign or diplomatic channels.

• 1883

  Post and Telegraph Office established

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Siam established the Post and Telegraph Office, the institutional predecessor of Thailand's modern national postal service, and issued its first postage stamp.

• 1858

  British Consular Post Office opens in Bangkok

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  The British Consular Post Office began operating in Bangkok to serve expatriate, missionary, and commercial demand for international mail.

• 1836

  Early recorded mail from Bangkok

  [1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  An early recorded letter from Bangkok was sent by American missionary Dan Beach Bradley in a stampless cover, illustrating the limited and largely informal nature of overseas correspondence before a Siamese national post.

Thailand's official national postal network, combining universal postal service coverage with express delivery, parcel transportation, and e-commerce logistics.

• Postal service

  Ordinary mail

  Thailand Post's conventional letter-mail service for domestic correspondence and documents. It represents the core universal postal function of the organization and is delivered through the nationwide post-office and delivery network.

• Postal service

  Registered mail

  A tracked or recorded postal service designed for senders who require stronger handling records than ordinary mail. It is used for documents and other correspondence requiring evidence of posting and delivery processing.

• Express delivery

  EMS

  Thailand Post's Express Mail Service is its principal express offering for time-sensitive documents and parcels. It extends the traditional postal network into faster domestic and international delivery and is an important part of the brand's commercial service portfolio.

• Parcel and logistics

  Parcel delivery

  Domestic and international parcel services transport packages through Thailand Post's post offices, licensed outlets, logistics centers, sorting facilities, and delivery network. Parcel activity became increasingly important as Thai online commerce expanded.

• Postal service · 1885

  International postal services

  International mail and parcel services connect Thailand with overseas postal destinations through the country's Universal Postal Union membership and international postal arrangements.

• Logistics

  E-commerce logistics

  Delivery and logistics support for merchants, individual sellers, and online commerce users. This business uses Thailand Post's nationwide physical footprint to handle the collection, sorting, transportation, and delivery of e-commerce parcels.

• 2018

  Investment in automated sorting centersStrategy

  Background

  Growth in e-commerce increased parcel volumes and created demand for greater sorting capacity and operational efficiency.

  Action taken

  Thailand Post allocated 10 billion baht to build automated sorting centers in Chonburi Province and Wang Noi District in Ayutthaya Province.

  Aftermath

  The investment supported a stated objective of automating postal, delivery, and selected back-office processes by 2021, although the available reference does not document the final completion status.

  Planned infrastructure investment. 10 billion baht allocated (2018)

  Source

• 2003

  Creation of a dedicated postal enterpriseStrategy

  Background

  The Communications Authority of Thailand had combined postal and telecommunications responsibilities. The government reorganized the authority into separate postal and telecommunications successors.

  Action taken

  Thailand Post was established as the standalone state enterprise responsible for postal services, while CAT Telecom took responsibility for telecommunications.

  Aftermath

  The separation gave Thailand Post a dedicated institutional identity and allowed it to develop postal, express, parcel, and logistics activities independently of the telecommunications business.

  Source

• 2018

  Thailand Post plans further growth from e-commerce logistics[1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Pricing

  Thailand Post forecast revenue above 30.8 billion baht for 2018 and linked its growth outlook to the expansion of electronic commerce and parcel delivery.

• 2018

  Thailand Post allocates funding for automated sorting centers[1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The enterprise allocated 10 billion baht for two automated sorting centers, one in Chonburi Province and another in Wang Noi District, Ayutthaya Province. The investment formed part of a broader plan to automate sorting, delivery operations, and back-office procedures.

• 2017

  Thailand Post reports higher 2017 revenue and profit[1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The company reported approximately 27.8 billion baht in 2017 revenue, an increase of about eight percent over the previous year, and approximately 4.2 billion baht in net profit, an increase of about 18 percent.

• 2016

  Thailand Post reports strong 2016 financial performance[1]Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Thailand Post reported revenue of approximately 25 billion baht and net profit of approximately 3.5 billion baht for 2016, compared with reported revenue of about 22 billion baht in 2015. The company attributed growth in part to expanding parcel and e-commerce activity.

1. 1Thailand Posten.wikipedia.org
2. 2Thailand Post official websitethailandpost.co.th