Hot News
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The holiday season is here, bringing warmth, joy, and a chance to reflect on the year gone by. As an expat in Thailand, this Christmas is a great time to invest in something that truly matters: health. Whether for you...
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Possessed Krabi drug dealer leads police to his drugs
PHOTO: khaosod.com A drug dealer became ‘possessed’ before leading police to his drugs in Krabi. On October 29, Krabi police arrested two drug dealers, before one of them acted like he was possessed by a spirit and led the police to check his friend’s car to discover even more drugs. Initially, police arrested 31 year old Ekkachai Petchsong when he…
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The world scrambles to attract Chinese travellers
PHOTO: pri.org Spending US$277 billion worldwide last year, Chinese travellers are the world’s top tourism spenders, by a long margin. Now the global travel industry is scrambling to capture its slice of the lucrative ‘bamboo dollar’, and falling out of Chinese travellers’ favour can have a dramatic impact on tourism figures. For example, Phuket has suffered as a result of…
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Thailand has 6 months to discuss GSP with US
PHOTO: TNA Thai authorities still have six months to discuss the US decision to suspend tariff exemptions for Thai exports under its Generalised System of Preferences, according to PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. The PM says the US has suspended GSP privileges not only for Thailand but other countries too. Thailand has enjoyed GSP privileges for nine years and Washington might think…
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39 year old being sought by police over gruesome Chiang Mai millionaire murder
PHOTO: Missing millionaire 58 year old Wannee Jiracharoenying found in a refrigerator – The Times The Provincial Court in southern Chiang Mai province has issued an arrest warrant for a key suspect in the murder of 58 year old Wannee Jiracharoenying. Thai police have broken the case of the murder of the estate developer Wannee, whose body was found stuffed into…
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120 Future Forward members quit the party
PHOTO: Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit – Khaosod One hundred and twenty members of the Future Forward Party, some of them former election candidates, have resigned, claiming that the party’s leaders have failed to keep their promises. Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit confirmed their decisions, saying it was their right and admitted that the party had made mistakes. Phuket News reports that…
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Phuket to get new tourist attraction theme park – Carnival Magic
From next year, Phuket will have a new tourist attraction, in the form of a theme park called Carnival Magic. The forthcoming attraction, which will be located in Kamala (where Phuket FantaSea has been operating for 21 years), has been confirmed by Phuket FantaSea’s chairman Pin Kewkacha. “Carnival Magic is a theme park that showcases Thai culture through technology and lighting.…
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High-speed rail link approved
Plans for a new 7.4 billion dollar high-speed rail link from Bangkok to Pattaya got the thumbs-up Thursday (October 24). The approval comes after months of acrimonious negotiations. The government said it had signed an agreement on Thursday to begin construction with a consortium led by conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group (CP) and including China Railway Construction Corporation. Japanese banks have…
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Visa fee waiver extended
Thailand’s Cabinet has approved a 6 month extension of the Visa on Arrival fee waiver for visitors, designed to generate more tourism spending in Thailand. A deputy government spokesperson said yesterday (October 28) that the Cabinet has in principle approved the draft fee waiver extension for six months beyond the initial expiry date to April 30 2020. Under the campaign,…
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Phuket hosts massive “Kao Kon La Kao” charity run featuring Toon
PHOTO: Mega beach party held out the front of XANA Beach Club along Layan Beach last Sunday – Laguna Phuket 13,000 people flocked to Layan Beach last Sunday for the “Kao Kon La Kao – Southern Series”. Led by the Kao Foundation’s Founder, marathon runner and hugely popular Tha rock star, Artiwara (Toon) Kongmalai, crowds of runners flocked to the…
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Thai exports will suffer from Trump labour rights decision
The Thai export sector will suffer another blow after the US President Donald Trump announced on Friday the suspension of 1.3 billion dollars worth of duty-free trade for certain Thai goods, claiming Thailand has not taken steps to protect the labor rights. In a letter to US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Mike Pence, Trump said…
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Thai banks report strong mortgage growth despite April’s new loan regulations
Ever since the Thai government enforced the higher loan-to-value ratios on property lenders last April, borrowers and developers have been generally unhappy with the result – a sluggish new home-buyer market. But some commercial lenders, particularly some of the larger ones, have still reported strong lending growth for the first nine months of 2019. Kasikorn Bank says its housing loans surged…
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Asia’s burgeoning urban population growth
PHOTO: Mother Jones Asia’s urban population continues to grow rapidly, according to a report by the Asian Development Bank. According to the ADB report, looking at the average growth rates of urban population from 1970 to 2017, developing Asia’s urban population grew 3.4%, compared to 2.6% for other developing economies and only 1% for developed economies. The average growth of urban…
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Chiang Mai hotel has big plans for Loy Kratong
137 Pillars House in Chiang Mai has made elaborate arrangements for next month’s Loy Krathong festival, better known as Yi Peng in the North. The full moon on November 11 will see celebrants floating lotus-shaped krathong with flowers, candles and incense on rivers and canals to pay respect to the water spirits and carry away the sadness and setbacks of…
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Thai exports will suffer from Trump decision
US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that the US will suspend 1.3 billion dollars worth of duty-free trade for certain items from Thailand, claiming that Thailand has not taken steps to protect labor rights. In a letter to US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Mike Pence, Trump said he had suspended duty-free treatment because Thailand…
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Viral video of Pattaya bus driver arguing with suspected illegal tour guides sparks investigation
Pattaya Tourist Police have begun an investigation into suspected illegal tour guides after a video of a frustrated bus driver arguing with the guides went viral on social media. The Pattaya News reports that the bus was carrying Chinese tourists and the video shows the driver asking the tour guides where they wanted to go. The guides appear to be…
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Arrest warrant issued for Korean suspected of stabbing another Korean man in Pattaya
Police in Pattaya have issued an arrest warrant for a 38 year old Korean man, named as Keunhei Park, who is the chief suspect in the stabbing of another Korean national. The Pattaya News reports that the victim is an expat man who was stabbed seventeen times in the early hours of Thursday morning. He is understood to have undergone…
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Fish washed up on Koh Naka probably from a fishing boat
Phuket Fishery Office explains the reason behind hundreds of fish dead on Naka Island Beach (Koh Naka). Responding to the viral social media pics of hundreds of fish dead on Naka Island Beach that spread across the net in recent days, the Phuket Fishery Office, yesterday (October 24), explained that the fish might have been dumped by a fishing boat,…
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Thirty public parks in Bangkok to open for Loy Krathong festival
Bangkok will open 30 public parks for the forthcoming Loy Krathong Festival, which is set to take place on November 11. Thai Residents reports that the parks will enable both locals and tourists to participate in the festival by floating krathongs in the parks’ ponds. A krathong is a floating container that holds various items including incense sticks, a candle,…
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Korean man in coma after Pattaya stabbing
A 28 year old tourist from South Korea has been left in a coma after being stabbed 17 times in Pattaya. The Nation reports that the incident happened in the Bang Lamung district in the early hours of yesterday morning. The victim has been named as Park Jin-hyung. It’s understood that a local taxi driver called the police at around…
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Police foil attempt to smuggle one million yaba pills from north to south of Thailand
Thai Residents reports that acting on intelligence reports, Border Patrol Police (BPP) in Chiang Mai have busted a drug smuggling operation that was attempting to transport a million yaba pills from the north of the country to the south. The operation began on October 22, with the gang planning to transport the pills from Chiang Dao district through the forest…
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Visa fee waiver to run until end of April
The government will extend the waiver of visa-on-arrival fees for another six months to boost the number of foreign tourists entering the Kingdom. A government spokesperson announced on Tuesday (October 22) that the Cabinet had approved a six-month extension to the exemption until the end of April next year. The visa fee waiver was implemented in November last year and…
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Phuket police arrest meth dealer, discover drugs valued at 15 million baht
PHOTO: Newshawk Phuket Drugs valued at 15 million baht have been seized in a drug crackdown in Phuket. On October 22, Phuket police, along with Phuket Governor Pakkapong Tawipat, reported to the media about a drug crackdown that ended up with a total seizure valued around 15 million baht. Earlier, the police received a report from an undercover agent that…
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Immigration police arrest German man in connection with death of German woman in Pattaya
A German man who has overstayed his visa has been arrested in Pattaya in connection with the death of a German woman found dead in a canal in Chonburi province. The Pattaya News reports the dead woman as 77 year old Marg und Schaefer and says she ran a bar with the man who was taken into custody on Tuesday.…
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Biometric scanning system to be tested at five provincial airports
The Ministry of Transport is considering using biometric facial scanning of air passengers, initially at five provincial airports, as part of a pilot project to develop smart airports across the kingdom. The deputy transport minister said Tuesday that a working committee, comprising members of the Department of Airports, the Royal Thai Police Office and the Ministry of Interior, has been…
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Points deduction system for drivers to be introduced mid-December
The point deduction system, for traffic and road infringements, is tentatively scheduled for activation for motorists and motorcyclists in mid-December. It is hoped that the system will help reduce road fatalities and injuries on Thai roads. The deputy commander of Highways Police Command says that every licensed driver will be given an allocation of 12 points. Each time the driver…
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Another Thai hotel management dispute flares up – The Peninsula Bangkok Hotel
PHOTO: The Peninsula Bangkok Hotel The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, which operates luxury brand The Peninsula Hotels, says it will “vigorously defend its rights” to manage The Peninsula Bangkok, following a legal win by the hotel’s Thai shareholder that paves the way for the management agreement to be terminated. And so the open wounds of a business saga are now…
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Thailand’s immigration police catch thousands of overstayers thanks to airport biometrics
The chief of Thailand’s immigration police says the biometrics system in place at sixteen airports across the country has so far netted 1,000 people who are blacklisted or on watch lists, 700 who have arrest warrants out for them, and 45,000 who have overstayed in the country. The Nation reports that the system is also used to detect fake passports…
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Thai women in Japan drug bust
Japanese Police and Customs Officials at Fukuoka Airport reported the arrest of seven Thai women who smuggled in drugs weighing more than a kilogram into Japan. The women separated the drugs into tiny bags and hid them in random places on their bodies. The women purchased tour tickets and tried to blend in as Thai tourists. When caught with the…
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Army chief not planning a leap into political life
Army chief General Apirat Kongsompong will have to wait for two years after he retires before he can run for PM, the Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam has declared – while Apirat himself claims it’s not even something he’s considering. The Nation reports that Prawit Wongsuwan, another Deputy PM, had suggested that Apirat should be Thailand’s next PM, but Wissanu insists…
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Noble consort has Royal titles removed
The Nation reports that Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi has had her “noble consort” (Chao Khun Phra) title removed by King Rama X along with her military rank. Yesterday, The Royal Gazette reported that His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua had recalled Sineenat’s Royal citing undesirable behaviour and disloyalty to the Royal Family. It also reported that Sineenat had been opposed to…
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