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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Pokémon Centre Bangkok to open at centralwOrld in 2026
Thailand will get its first Pokémon Centre in 2026, with Pokémon Centre Bangkok set to open at centralwOrld in Pathum Wan district, Bangkok. Pokémon (Thailand) has signed a lease agreement with Central Pattana for the new Bangkok branch. The deal was signed by Shunsuke Sasaki, director of Pokémon (Thailand), and Isareit Chirathivat, Central Pattana’s Head of Leasing – Fashion &…
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Thailand hits 60-year investment record as Amazon, Google, BYD and others bet big
If you only looked at the investment scoreboard for Southeast Asian economies last year, chances are you would probably want to skip over Thailand. While Vietnam was sprinting ahead with 7% growth and Indonesia held steady at 5%, Thailand was limping with a meagre 2.4%. With the IMF recently cutting its 2026 projection to a dismal 1.6%, the narrative that…
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16 restaurants seized in Bang Tao beach encroachment crackdown
huket authorities seized five rai of Choeng Talay coastline after discovering restaurants unlawfully charging access fees, prompting imminent legal prosecution against investors. Phuket Deputy Governor Rungruang Thimabut led a joint operation to inspect the area. Officials discovered private investors had fenced off the public beach. They built 16 restaurants and other commercial structures on the site. These operators restricted public…
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Can Thailand Regulate Crypto Without Killing Its Startup Energy?
Thailand is attempting a feat not easily achieved: to introduce crypto into a regulated financial system without necessarily abandoning the experimentation that made the sector attractive in the first place. The nation has been evidenced with interest in digital assets through tourism payment pilots, tokenized finance, exchange oversight and discussion of regulated investment products. However, as regulations become increasingly transparent,…
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CP Group signs MoU with SEGA to explore ASEAN IP growth
CP Group has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan-based SEGA Corporation to explore entertainment business opportunities in Thailand and the ASEAN region, the companies announced yesterday, April 27. The agreement focuses on combining SEGA’s global intellectual property (IP) and content development expertise with CP Group’s business ecosystem and regional network. Under the MoU, both parties will begin by studying…
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Thai AirAsia halt nine routes from Don Mueang due to fuel crisis
Thai AirAsia has revised its summer 2026 flight schedule, temporarily suspending nine international routes from Don Mueang Airport and reducing services on others, as rising jet fuel costs linked to the Middle East conflict put pressure on airline operations. The carrier has halted services on several routes, with some suspensions running through to late October 2026. The following routes have…
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US-Iran conflict forces Thai airlines to slash capacity
The ongoing US-Iran conflict, now two months old, has triggered an oil price shock that is squeezing airlines worldwide, driving up living costs and causing widespread flight cancellations. A deepening jet fuel crisis is forcing carriers, including those in Thailand, to cut capacity in the coming months, putting pressure on both airlines and airports. Thai airlines are facing serious financial…
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Kao’s NEWTLAC earns Material Innovation Awards 2025 for sustainable asphalt innovation
Kao Industrial (Thailand) Co., Ltd. has announced that NEWTLAC, a chemical innovation that repurposes used PET plastic bottles into an asphalt additive, has won the Material Innovation Awards 2025 at Architect Lanna 2025. The company said the additive is designed to enhance road construction performance while supporting sustainability goals by converting recycled plastic waste into what it described as green…
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Thai Senate committee proposes a 3% VAT hike in new tax reform
Thailand’s Economic, Financial and Fiscal Affairs Committee of the Senate proposed a tax reform plan to address the country’s fiscal deficit and rising public debt, including a proposal to raise value-added tax (VAT) from 7% to 10%. The committee, chaired by Kamphol Supapaeng, discussed the tax restructuring plan yesterday, April 19, as part of efforts to tackle long-term fiscal challenges.…
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Thailand to issue emergency loan decree amid El Niño fears and rising energy costs
Thailand’s government is preparing to issue an emergency loan decree worth 500,000 million baht to build up financial reserves ahead of what officials describe as compounding economic risks, including a super El Niño weather event and elevated global energy prices. Deputy Prime Minister Pakorn Nilpraphat confirmed the plan, saying the current state of the treasury is limited and relatively rigid,…
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Is day trading legal in Thailand? (2026 guide)
A lot of people living, or at least staying, in Thailand get into trading and only think to ask this question after they’ve already opened an account somewhere. So, if you’re asking it now, before putting any money down, well done and read on! But essentially, day trading is legal in Thailand. But depending on what you are trading and…
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Thai flight cuts lead to 10% drop in outbound travel
Flight cancellations and capacity reductions are expected to push outbound trips down by 15 to 20% during the low season, with a 10% decline projected across the full year. Several Thai carriers have trimmed their schedules on specific routes. Thai AirAsia X has pulled back on its Bangkok to Sapporo service, while Thai AirAsia has reduced flights to China for…
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Japan pledges US$10 billion to tackle energy crisis in Asia
Japan pledged US$10 billion, or around 300 billion baht, to support Asian countries in addressing the energy crisis, citing the close links and interdependence created by supply chains. After a meeting with leaders from Asian countries, Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae announced that the funding would be directed to countries in Asia, particularly in Southeast Asia, to help secure crude…
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Jet fuel costs force Korean budget airlines to cut Thai flights
South Korean budget airlines are cutting and suspending flights to Thailand as rising jet fuel costs, worsened by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, squeeze low-cost carriers on the route. T’way Air announced via Facebook that its daily service between Suvarnabhumi and Incheon airports will continue only until May 9, after which it will be reduced to twice weekly…
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US banks warned of cyber risks from new AI model
Top executives from major American banks were warned by a senior US government official about potential cyberattack risks linked to a new artificial intelligence model from Anthropic, with a closed-door meeting held in Washington, DC. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed a select group of bank CEOs, including those from Bank of America, Citi, and Wells Fargo, warning that integrating the…
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Thai economy braces for stagflation amid Iran war: How real estate must pivot to survive
The secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), Danucha Pichayanan, said that the prolonged conflict and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz for over a month had significantly impacted global energy market confidence. Iran has proposed negotiation conditions, such as the withdrawal of US military bases from the Middle East. This marks an initial stance for…
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Agoda’s plan to make everything possible for its partners in 2026
Most people know Agoda as the app they use to book a hotel. What is less visible is the scale of what the company is building behind the scenes, a B2B partner ecosystem that powers travel for banks, airlines, retail platforms, and loyalty programmes across the globe. At a media roundtable held at Agoda’s new office in One Bangkok, two…
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Southeast Asia leans toward China over US, 2026 survey finds
A survey published by a Singaporean institute has found that a slim majority of respondents across Southeast Asia would align with China over the United States if forced to choose between the two powers. The poll, conducted between January 5 and February 20, 2026, covered 2,008 respondents from all 11 ASEAN member states, including Timor-Leste, which joined the bloc in…
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Thailand plans overnight petrol station restrictions after April 20
Thailand could begin restricting fuel station operating hours after April 20, with petrol stations potentially closing from 10pm to 5am as the government considers energy-saving measures amid conflict in the Middle East. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said yesterday, on April 7, that the government is working on oil-saving measures to ensure the country has enough fuel for domestic use. He…
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AirAsia ticket prices rise 40% as fuel costs stay sky-high
AirAsia X is raising ticket prices by up to 40% as soaring jet fuel costs linked to the Middle Eastern conflict put fresh pressure on airlines across Asia. The carrier said yesterday, April 6, that higher oil prices had become its most serious challenge, with jet fuel costs doubling in recent weeks. The increase is forcing the long-haul low-cost airline…
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Thailand’s digital entertainment shift raises questions about user trends
Thailand’s digital landscape is changing rapidly, with more users spending time on online platforms for entertainment, information, and everyday convenience. As discussions around entertainment complexes and digital regulation continue, attention is also turning to how people engage with different types of online content, including interactive formats that are growing quietly in popularity. A Growing Appetite for Digital Platforms Over the…
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Thailand crypto betting changes under the pressure of enforcing, and Solana payments have become the focus
Online betting is a legal grey area in Thailand, but the government is on the hunt to prevent illegal gambling rings and offshore betting in 2026. More recent efforts to crack down have focused on mass-scale digital interference, including blocking hundreds of thousands of gambling-related URLs and takedowns of online gambling networks. The Thai government has also improved its cooperation…
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Microsoft to invest US$1 billion in Thailand’s cloud and AI by 2028
Microsoft has announced it will invest more than US$1 billion in Thailand between 2026 and 2028 to develop cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, aiming to strengthen the country’s competitiveness globally and to upskill digital skills for millions of people nationwide. Brad Smith, Microsoft’s vice chair and president, said the company is focusing on what it calls the diffusion rate…
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Thailand freezes fares, offers fuel subsidies after 6-baht pump price shock
The Ministry of Transport has introduced targeted fuel subsidies for four specific transport groups from April 1 to 30, 2026. At the same time, it is freezing public transport fares to ensure affordable travel during the Songkran festival. The move follows a sharp retail fuel price hike of 6 baht per liter on March 26, 2026, by the Fuel Fund…
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Rights holder accuses Thai publisher of unlicensed comics sales
Tong Li Publishing Co., Ltd issued a Thai-language statement today, March 26, alleging that Thailand-based publisher BURAPAT COMICS has been printing, distributing and selling the comic Hongsa Chom Rachan without legal authorisation. Hongsa Chom Rachan is the Thai release of The Ravages of Time, a Chinese-language historical comic series from Hong Kong set in the Three Kingdoms era that has…
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How Thailand’s construction industry is turning to ERP systems for control, transparency, and scale
Thailand’s construction industry is entering a decisive phase of transformation. With large-scale infrastructure projects accelerating across the country, particularly under initiatives such as the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), contractors are facing increasing pressure to deliver projects faster, more efficiently, and with tighter cost control. This shift is not only about scale. It is about complexity. Modern construction projects involve multiple…
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OnlyFans owner Leonid Radvinsky dies of cancer at 43
OnlyFans owner Leonid Radvinsky has died at 43 years old after a battle with cancer, the company said yesterday, March 23, announcing the death of the entrepreneur who oversaw the subscription platform through its parent company. In a statement, an OnlyFans spokesperson said, “We are deeply saddened to announce the death of Leo Radvinsky. Leo passed away peacefully after a…
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Business class flights to Thailand in 2026: Best routes, airlines, and what’s changed
For U.S. travellers heading to Thailand, business class in 2026 still means a one-stop journey, and that makes the routing decision almost as important as the cabin itself. With no nonstop business class flights to Thailand currently available, the quality of the trip depends not only on the airline but also on the connection city, total travel time, and how…
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HKTDC launches GreenBiz HK campaign in Bangkok
The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) organised the GreenBiz HK campaign in Bangkok, comprising a GreenBiz HK Forum with dedicated thematic sessions, networking events and business matching meetings, alongside a Hong Kong Green Team delegation. The campaign aims to foster collaboration between Hong Kong and Thailand in the green economy. One of the highlights, the GreenBiz HK Forum, was…
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UAE property market slows sharply as deals fall 51% month on month
Property transactions in the UAE have slowed sharply since the latest conflict in the Middle East began, according to investment bank Goldman Sachs, which said rising regional uncertainty is starting to weigh directly on homebuyer demand. The war is now entering its third week and has increased volatility across financial and energy assets in the region. Goldman Sachs analysts, led…
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