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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Is private health insurance in Thailand worth it? Real costs vs risks explained
Thailand has a strong healthcare system with both public and private options. Public hospitals offer affordable care, but many people, including expats, choose private health insurance for faster service, modern facilities, and more treatment choices. To decide if private health...
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Civil Aviation Authority to consider airlines’ requests to ease some Covid measures
The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand has singled out 8 Thai airlines it still has faith in and believes will stay afloat. The CAAT says that without the Covid-19 crisis, none of the carriers risked going bankrupt and the tough financial situation they find themselves in is solely due to the pandemic. The Bangkok Post reports that the 8 airlines,…
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Consumer groups sue Trade Competition Commission for approving CP-Tesco merger
Thailand’s Trade Competition Commission has been served with a lawsuit courtesy of the Foundation for Consumers and 37 other consumer groups, as a result of a merger between the conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group and Lotus (formerly Tesco Lotus). “The Charoen Pokphand Group is a Thai conglomerate based in Bangkok. It is Thailand’s largest private company and one of the world’s…
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8 Thai Airlines must provide a business recovery plan or lose out on additional routes
Commercial Airlines Registered in Thailand must provide a business recovery plan or run the risk of the civil aviation authority of Thailand (CAAT) halting the allocation of additional routes. According to reports, eight airlines have been targeted. The 8 airlines on the list from the Civil Aviation Commission (CAC) are Thai Airways, Thai Smile Airways, Nok Air, AirAsia X, VietJet…
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Slow return of foreign tourism makes more redundancies inevitable – Airlines Association of Thailand
The president of the Airlines Association of Thailand says further layoffs in the sector are inevitable, due to the slow return of international tourism. In a Bangkok Post report, Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth says the sluggish revival of foreign tourism, now not expected until the last quarter of the year, means all carriers continue to face financial hardship. And while there was…
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Governments & old media versus social media – who will win? | VIDEO
We look at the recent changes made by the Australian and Indian governments to except control over the world’s biggest social media platforms. India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take down social media accounts it deemed, well, anti social. There is…
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The social media giants in battle with ‘old’ media and world governments | VIDEO
https://youtu.be/HKKIuWHw_t8 “The rules signal greater willingness by countries around the world to rein in big tech firms such as Google, Facebook and Twitter that the governments fear have become too powerful with little accountability.” India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take…
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Domestic air passenger numbers double those of January
Passenger numbers on domestic flights within Thailand have doubled within a month, rising from 4,000 in January to over 10,000 this month. Having nearly recovered to pre-pandemic levels, domestic travel plummeted once more when Covid-19 resurfaced late last year. Apirat Chaiwongnoi from the Department of Airports says 15 of Thailand’s 29 airports are now operating domestic flights, with more expected…
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Samut Sakhon’s shrimp market to remain closed until February 15
Samut Sakhon’s Central Shrimp Market, the epicentre of Thailand’s recent wave of Covid-19, will remain closed until February 15. The market can reopen once the overall hygiene situation at the market and surrounding area has improved, according to the province’s disease control committee. Local officials say the shrimp market needs to remain closed until the market structure and nearby residential…
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Changes to Thai provincial Covid zones – what’s re-opening today?
There are quite a few changes coming into effect today around many of the Thai provinces. Some types of businesses will be re-opening and some restrictions are being lifted. The new measures go into effect TODAY. Here is a list from the National News Bureau of Thailand… Maximum control (Dark Red): Samut Sakhon The following locations will remain closed: Pubs,…
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Lights, camera, Covid – Tourism Ministry wants film crews to come to Thailand now
Without much luck with their ‘cunning ideas’ to draw back a few of the remaining world’s travellers, Thailand’s tourism officials are turning to the film industry to attract some people and investment. The Tourism and Sports Ministry is aiming to generate around 3 billion baht from foreign film crews and is targeting film projects with an investment over 100 million baht.…
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UPDATE: Thailand Covid zones and your restrictions
Which of the five coloured zones are you living in? A green zone? Red zone? Pale red zone? hat’s the difference and what’s open and what’s not? If you’re not in Samut Sakhon, the coastal province just south west of Bangkok, then some of the restrictions imposed by the CCSA have recently been lifted. Here’s a quick look at what’s…
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Pattaya Beach, fly over the pristine but horrifyingly empty beaches | VIDEO
The Thailand Discovery YouTube channel has captured an empty Pattaya beach front for the first month of 2021. The first month of any year would usually be one of the busiest months of the year and the beaches should be heaving with tourists in the post Christmas/New Year break and the lead up to the Chinese New Year travel burst.…
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Taxi and transport drivers calling for help from the Thai government
Unions of Thai Taxi workers and Thai automobile drivers have handed over an official request to a government labour committee to file a request to the government seeking financial support. Thai Taxi workers passed over their requests to Suthep Yoo-on, the chairman of the Labour Committee officially seeking industry support. Just about all sectors of the country’s transport infrastructure have…
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Taxis and tuk tuks ask Thai government for help
Unions of Thai Taxi workers and Thai automobile drivers have handed over an official request to a government labour committee to file a request to the government seeking financial support. Thai Taxi workers passed over their requests to Suthep Yoo-on, the chairman of the Labour Committee officially seeking industry support. Just about all sectors of the country’s transport infrastructure have…
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Scrub away Pattaya’s restrictions with a Walking Street wash-a-thon
Without much other good news on the horizon, Pattaya officials have celebrated almost two weeks of no new Covid-19 infections with a celebratory ‘wash down’ of Walking Street. The ritual ‘wetting’, in the Songkran tradition, was seen as a new beginning, washing away the bad spirits and the bad times that had fallen on the once-busy red light district. Sonthaya…
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Phuket eases restrictions, bars back to late-night hours
Things are getting back to normal in Phuket. The provincial government eased disease control restrictions, allowing restaurants, bars and entertainment venues to go back to their normal operating hours – no more midnight closure order – and lifting the late-night alcohol ban. While bars can now stay open late and serve alcohol after midnight, dancing is prohibited and venues cannot…
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The ‘office’ is SO last century. Say hello to the world of remote working.
Do you work from home? Or can you work anywhere have a laptop and wi-fi? Are you a trader or selling stuff online? You’re part of a growing trend in modern work practices as the fancy city office becomes an expensive relic of the ‘old normal’. 2020 became the year of people working from home. In same case, it was…
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Chatuchak market is in worst crisis in 5 decades due to Covid-19, vendors say
Chatuchak Weekend Market, Bangkok’s biggest market and a popular tourist destination, is hit hard by the new wave of Covid-19. With the lack of foreign tourists due to travel restrictions over the past year, as well as more locals staying at home despite the market’s strict disease control measures, the number of visitors at the market has dropped by 90%.…
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Eating out until 11pm in Bangkok is waiting for approval
Bangkok restaurants may soon be allowed to stay open a little later. Health officials are considering easing up Covid-19 prevention measures by extending restaurant dine-in closing times to 11pm. If the proposal by the Thai Restaurant Association is given a green light, it may lead to the lifting ban of alcohol drinking. After the order of shutting entertainment venues and…
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34.7% of Thai tourist businesses closed down
“When the tourists start coming back it will be a very different holiday experience for them. Will it ever get back to the numbers before Covid? Never.” A Tourism Authority of Thailand survey, conducted between January 10 – 12, indicates that more than a third of the country’s tourism-related businesses has already shut up shop and gone out of business.…
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Future of Thai department stores is being redefined
While department stores have been a familiar destination for Thai people for many decades, CBRE, an international property consultant, is witnessing a decline in popularity and stunted growth, particularly in 2020 when Covid-19 adversely impacted the sector. CBRE believes that to adapt to e-commerce disruption and the changing consumer behaviour, department stores in 2021 (and beyond) will have to fine-tune…
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US jobs market stumbles back into decline
The labour market for the world’s largest economy is heading back into reverse mode after slowly chugging back into gear over the past 8 months, following the March stock crash and initial impacts of the US state lockdown measures.. The December report was the first drop since April figures, providing the strongest evidence of the impact of the huge number…
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Covid-19 could cost an estimated 9 billion baht loss to the economy – Thai alcohol association
An alcohol business association is saying the latest round of restrictions and closures on pubs and bars could cost the industry and businesses 9 billion baht. The Thai Alcohol Beverage Business Association is railing against the Thai government’s policies as they restrict the operations and operating hours of tens of thousands of bars, pubs and clubs around the country. They…
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Thai Air Asia says new Covid outbreak has destroyed business
The executive chairman of Asia Aviation, the largest shareholder in Thai Air Asia, says the Covid-19 resurgence has “destroyed the low-cost carrier”. Tassapon Bijleveld says that, even without a national lockdown, bookings have plummeted. “Travel sentiment has plunged lower than last year. This is different this time because people are voluntarily skipping their travel plans even without a nationwide lockdown…
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Latest details of Covid restrictions and locations in Thailand | VIDEO
UPDATE: From tomorrow (Tuesday), restaurants will be required to close to in-dining customers, from 7pm to 6am. Restrictions are now in place, as of midnight last night, as the latest mitigations against Thailand’s Covid-19 outbreak. The outbreak, which kicked off on December 20 last year, has now reached most of Thailand’s provinces, some more affected than others, and that…
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Thai Restaurant Association asks PM not to restrict in-dining services
As the 4 day New Year long weekend comes to a close, there are a number of proposed restrictions looming as the CCSA battles to contain the latest outbreaks of cases, particularly in and around Bangkok and the nearby easter provinces. There is currently a proposal to restrict Bangkok’s restaurants to take away services only, as well as full travel…
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What’s closed in Bangkok? Decision on restaurants today.
Here’s the full list of closures from the BMA that went into effect at midnight last night in the city of Bangkok. The Bangkok Metropolitan Organisation has closed “high risk’ venues around Bangkok.(Pattaya/Banglamung list of restrictions and closures below) Entertainment venues, water parks, amusement parks, playgrounds, floating markets, flea markets, snooker and billiards clubs, arcade game premises, games shops, Internet…
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The case for temporarily closing hotel and restaurant operations
OPINION by Bill Barnett As the final days of disruptive 2020 come screeching to an erratic end, hotel, and restaurant owners are peering into an unpredictable year ahead. Here in Thailand over the past week, the tourism industry has been shaken to its core over an uptick in Covid-19 cases and backroom speculation over fears of another round of lockdowns. (Restrictions,…
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Something fishy about the Samut Sakhon Covid outbreak – who’s responsible?
Here are 2 resources for the above story… https://thethaiger.com/news/national/… http://www.rapid-asia.com/blog/forced… Until the weekend many people would have never heard of Samut Sakhon, a province just south west of Greater Bangkok and sharing a provincial border with the capital. The province is best known as a major hub for Thailand’s shrimp and fishing industry, packed with markets around the coastal tributaries…
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Bangkok’s commercial property market struggles through 2020
This year Thailand’s developers had to work around the effects of government lockdowns and restrictions because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Indeed significant changes have occurred to the commercial property market in Thailand. CBRE Research reports that the Bangkok office market suffered a significant change in the net up-take, whilst the retail market consumer confidence index fell and the hotel market…
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