Business News
Thailand business news, market trends, foreign investment, and economic updates—stay informed on stock market movements, entrepreneurship, and key developments shaping the economy. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for business news in Thailand.
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Phuket Business: Why Google is still the best
PHUKET: The word ‘Google’ is a household name, synonymous with the word ‘search’ or even ‘research’ for most people around the world. The name itself originated from the word ‘Googol’, coined by Milton Sirotta, meaning the number 1 followed by 100 zeros; basically an extremely large number. It represents the vast universe of information that Google makes available to the…
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Phuket Business: Tax filing deadline nears
PHUKET: With the peak of the Thai hot season fast approaching, the Personal Income Tax (PIT) filing deadline is also nigh. Usually, the deadline is March 31, but since the last day of March this year falls on a Sunday, income earners in the Kingdom have been given until Monday, April 1 to file their paper returns, or until Tuesday,…
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Phuket’s scrap yards cleaning up
PHUKET: As part of a campaign to raise awareness about pollution, and thus reduce it, the Phuket Environmental Office is conducting appraisals of the island’s antique shops, warehouses and old household item scrap yards. So far, a total of 39 businesses on Phuket have been targeted by the government campaign, which looks to certify related operators as a “Green Antique…
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Phuket Business: Three more subdivisions get approval
PHUKET: A recent Phuket Land Subdivision Committee (PLSC) meeting gave provisional approval for three Land Subdivision Permit (LSP) applications, while denying another application. Chaired by Phuket Vice Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada, the PLSC’s first meeting this year was held on March 5 at the Phuket Land Office. Among the topics addressed in the meeting was the review and consideration of four…
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Reflecting on currency exposure
PHUKET: If you are a long-term expatriate living in Phuket, Thailand, you have probably seen the Thai baht appreciate significantly against your home currency – a trend that will likely continue for the foreseeable future. This appreciation (along with an average inflation rate of 2.7% since 2000) makes it increasingly expensive to live in Thailand at a time when you…
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Phuket Business: AMCHAM to host US taxation seminar in Patong
PHUKET: If you are an American and are baffled by the US tax regime on overseas residents, then you do not want to miss an AMCHAM (the American Chamber of Commerce) seminar on Friday (March 8), at the Holiday Inn Patong. John Andes, tax partner at KPMG Thailand, will provide an overview of US taxpayers’ 2012 US income tax and…
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Phuket Business: A land of opportunity
PHUKET: The island emerged last year as Thailand’s strongest hotel market, according to a recent report by Jones Lang LaSalle. The report, entitled Spotlight on Thailand – Hotel Investment Market said that as of December 2012, year-to-date (YTD), Phuket had an occupancy rate of 72.4%. Meanwhile, it said that the Average Daily Rate (ADR) was 3,902 baht, which resulted in…
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Phuket Business: French ambassador to boost SMEs
PHUKET: The new French Ambassador to Thailand, Thierry Viteau, made his first visit outside of his station in Bangkok recently to discuss in Phuket the need to strengthen relations in the tourism market. “Phuket and Nice in France have been ‘sister cities’ since 1989; I want to take this opportunity to re-strengthen and renew our relations,” Amb Viteau, who assumed…
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Major hotels prepare for blackouts next month
PHUKET: Major retailers, hotels and other businesses are planning strategies to cope with a possible electricity crisis in April, preparing to reduce power consumption to prevent blackouts and losses in revenue. A large supply of natural gas from Myanmar will be disrupted from April 4-12 as two drilling rigs in the Andaman Sea are shut down for repairs. Other fuel…
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Phuket Finance: The many laws of averaging
PHUKET: Averaging is a word that has many meanings when it comes to investing. The investment world is full of conflicting opinions and advice, and a very common mistake people make is following advice that may be intended for short term speculative money and applying it to long term investment money, or money that is meant to be generating a…
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Phuket Business: Expats rank Thailand highly in global survey
PHUKET: One of the largest ‘expat living’ surveys conducted last year ranked Thailand second in terms of experience and quality of life, while ranking the Kingdom third in economics. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) recently published the results of its 2012 Expat Explorer Survey, which encompassed responses from more than 5,000 expats residing in thirty countries.The same…
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Phuket Business: OTOP fair to showcase local products
PHUKET: No less than 15 million baht is expected to be circulated during the “OTOP City – Four Regions” fair, an event that will showcase up to 200 booths selling quality local products from Phuket and across the country. The fair being held at the Saphan Hin fair-grounds, in Phuket Town (click here for map), commenced on Friday and will…
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AMCHAM taxation seminar for Americans
PHUKET: If you are an American and are baffled by the US tax regime on overseas residents, then you do not want to miss an AMCHAM – the American Chamber of Commerce – seminar on March 8 at the Holiday Inn Patong. John Andes, tax partner at KPMG Thailand, will provide an overview of US taxpayers’ 2012 US income tax…
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Phuket Business: How expats can simplify their finances
PHUKET: Moving to another country to work or retire, like Thailand, can be a daunting undertaking that will inevitably make managing your finances more complicated and time consuming. With that in mind, here are a few tips to help you simplify your finances so you can quickly start enjoying your new life as an expat:Consolidate your financial accounts:If you have…
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Phuket Business: Recalling the cycle of market emotions
PHUKET: My first investment was in a stock fund in 1990 when I was an engineering student at university. I was told to just buy and hold and put money in blindly and it will grow. They were somewhat right but I wanted to know more and began a quest to find a way to pinpoint what is known as…
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Phuket Business: Makro opens new branch in Patong
PHUKET: Membership-base, wholesale food retailer, Siam Makro PCL has expanded its Phuket operations with the opening of its Makro Food Service branch in Patong. Located in the area of the Mae Ubon Derm fresh market on Nanai Road in Patong, the new branch is the second Makro store on the island. Its retail area spans a total 1,000 square meters,…
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Rose vendors absorb inflation for ‘day of love’
PHUKET: Flower vendors across Phuket are relishing increased orders and sales for the ‘day for lovers’, even despite rising prices. Pran Supasri, a flower shop owner near Vachira Hospital says, “Rose prices have not increased significantly when compared to last year’s price.” He added that even though the price of roses has increased slightly ahead of Valentine’s Day, flower vendors…
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Phuket Finance: Beat inflation with a low-risk return
PHUKET: One fund that I have recently been putting into portfolios is the Freehold Income Trust (FIT), which invests in ground rents. Ground rents are a relic of feudal Britain, which can now be bought and sold like any other asset. They are extremely safe income-yielding alternative investments, since the holder of ground rent could theoretically repossess a property worth…
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Phuket Business: Not in front of the children
PHUKET: While working from home might seem like a practical option for workers in Thailand wanting to cut commutes and spend more time on their personal lives, the reality is somewhat different. According to a survey conducted by Regus, the world’s largest provider of flexible workplaces, six in ten respondents who work from home in Thailand revealed that they’re regularly…
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Phuket Business: Inflation up for Chinese NY
PHUKET: The head of the Department of Internal Trade (DIT) Phuket Office said that the 300 baht daily minimum wage has contributed to market inflation ahead of the Chinese New Year festivities. DIT-Phuket Chief Supacha Bunthalit told the Phuket Gazette that increased wages directly increase base costs for farmers, suppliers and vendors. “Of course it [the minimum wage rise] is…
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Local officials step up talks, spending for ASEAN economy
PHUKET: Local officials continue to intensify dialogue, and thus anticipation for the 2015 ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), with the economic positioning for Phuket and the Southern region gradually beginning to take form. The latest ‘AEC – Phuket get ready’ talks, held last week at the Phuket Provincial Hall, covered the latest regional economic integration challenges and opportunities. Phuket Governor Maitri…
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Phuket Finance: UK pension transfers – Gibraltar
PHUKET: Since the QROPS (Qualifying Recognized Overseas Pensions Scheme) legislation was introduced on April 6 2006, an individual transferring their pension overseas does not have to transfer their funds to the same country or jurisdiction as they are retiring to. This opened the doors for many pension providers in several jurisdictions, predominantly the channel island of Guernsey, to offer QROPS…
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Phuket inflation tops South
PHUKET: Not only is Phuket still considered the most expensive consumer province in Thailand, but its annual inflation rate remains the highest in the South – the Kingdom’s most inflated region. Thailand’s cost of living in 2012, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose by 3.02% from the previous year, while overall inflation in Phuket was measured at…
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PATA meeting questions whether Thai culture is good for tourism
PHUKET: Despite the various shortcomings in Thailand’s service industry, tourists keep coming back, two Thai journalists recently told a tourism meeting in Bangkok. Attending the meeting, Ken Scott, Managing Director of his own communications firm, ScottAsia Communications, reports: Thailand is a like a cunning cheer leader, a good looker, an easy date who cheats at her exams and gossips about…
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Phuket absorbs Southern langsat surplus
PHUKET: The island’s supply of langsat (Lansium domesticum) has increased by 10 tonnes over the past few weeks due to a late-season harvest surplus in and near Thailand’s Deep South. Since about mid-January, several agriculture groups from Yala, Songkhla and Phatthalung have travelled to Phuket to sell the fruit wholesale, with the Phuket Office of Commercial Affairs (POCA) serving as…
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Phuket Property: Thai hotels benefit from local software
PHUKET: About 1,000 member hotels of the Thai Hotel Association (THA) are benefiting from a locally developed room reservation technology that is changing the way hotels in Thailand do business online, keeping them ahead of the game in the global hospitality industry. The new ‘Software as a Service’ for independent hotels is the result of a recently formed exclusive partnership…
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Phuket Finance: Exploring the theory of Peak Oil
PHUKET: I read a fascinating report recently from a Harvard researcher that shatters the common view of how quickly oil is becoming a scarce resource. It essentially states that – given new technology – the idea of “Peak Oil” is fundamentally flawed. Peak Oil is a theory that at a certain point in history (approaching very quickly), humans will reach…
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Phuket Business: Luxury auto dealer aligns brand with international football lovers
PHUKET: Football players from Phuket FC recently visited the TSL Auto Corporation (TSL) premium imported car showroom to thank the company for officially sponsoring the team in the upcoming Thai Yamaha One (Division 1) 2013 season. Phuket FC’s head coach Panipol Kerdyam made a personal appearance, alongside players Nontaphan Jiensathawong, Nenebi Tre Sylyee Tre, Luiz Eduardo Purcio, Girogi Tsimakuridze, Kritsada…
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Phuket Business: New car owners due B1.2bn
PHUKET: More than 14,300 new car owners in Phuket took advantage of the government’s first-car rebate scheme, with the combined value of due rebates amounting to more than 1.2 billion baht. According to figures from the Phuket Excise Department (PED), a total of 14,327 eligible applications were filed in the province from September 16, 2011 to December 31, 2012. These…
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Banking for Phuket Expats carries special charges, risks
PHUKET: For expats in Phuket and across Thailand who intend to stay permanently or for most of the year in the country, opening a Thai bank account makes financial sense. After all, except for a few ATMs owned by AEON (a large Japanese conglomerate) and Citibank, Thai ATMs will charge a 150 baht fee per foreign transaction and there are…
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