Leading Thai economist Dr. Pipat Luengnaruemitchai identifies a critical disconnect in Thailand's economic data: PMI shows manufacturing expanding while MPI (industrial output) contracted 3% and Q2 GDP grew only 1.9%—lowest in Asia. The core issue is structural transformation: new AI-linked industries (hard drives, photonics, data centers) are growing fast but remain small, while legacy sectors (auto, petrochemicals, appliances) continue shrinking and dominate GDP weight. He warns traditional metrics measure physical units rather than value-add, underestimating productivity gains in data-intensive sectors and overlooking high import content in new investments. Recommendation: allow resources to migrate from non-competitive to growth industries to accelerate structural transition.