Man arrested for stealing Royal Thai Armed Forces bus | Thailand News Today

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IMF predicts a recession in Thailand

The head of the International Monetary Fund (or IMF) predicts Thailand and Southeast Asian countries will suffer from recession this year along with the rest of the world.

Kristalina Georgieva believes a third of the global economy will be in recession this year, including Thailand, and Vietnam.

The 69 year old Bulgarian economist reckons 2023 will be “tougher” than last year as the United States, European Union, and China witness a slowdown of their economies.

The prediction is a result of the effect of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, rising prices, higher interest rates, and the spread of Covid-19 in China weighing on the global economy.

Thailand may have climbed off its critical point, and opened the curtains on a new post-Covid dawn but Georgieva believes the Land of Smiles is not quite ready to take a dip in the pool, just yet

Inflation has been steadily rising across Southeast Asia largely because of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Furthermore, higher interest rates have also hit households and businesses.

That’s not all. Stats released over the weekend highlighted a weakness in the Chinese economy at the end of last year.

China’s factory activity shrank for the third month in a row reported the official purchasing managers’ index for December, and at the fastest rate in almost three years as coronavirus infections decimated the mainland’s factories.

In the past, the Asia-Pacific region has depended on China as a major trading partner for economic support in times of crisis.

Now, Asian economies are facing the lasting economic effects of how China has handled the pandemic.

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Man arrested for stealing Royal Thai Armed Forces bus

Police arrested a man for stealing a Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF) bus and driving it to Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi Airports to pick up some imaginary diplomats.

Police reported the thief has a criminal history of drugs but did not reveal the result of his drug test.

An officer from the Support Services Department under the RTARF filed a complaint at ร่มเกล้า Police Station that a green air-coned bus disappeared from the parking area near the soldier’s accommodation in Soi Rom Klao 40 in the Lat Krabang district of Bangkok.

The police checked CCTV cameras and witnessed a man driving the bus out of the parking lot at about noon on Friday, December 31, but then lost sight of the vehicle.

At 11 pm on the same day, a security guard at Suvarnabhumi Airport notified Rom Klao Police that they found the bus.

The driver, 35-year-old Sarayut Thepsila had a row with the airport security guard because he wanted to park in front of Gate 10 of the passenger terminal, which is a prohibited area. Sarayut claimed that he was picking up some diplomats.

Police arrived at the scene, arrested Sarayut, and took him in for questioning.

The media reported that Sarayut has been arrested six times for drug-related cases, adding police have yet to release details of whether he tested positive in this theft case.

Sarayut was charged with Section 335 (10) of the Criminal Law: whoever commits theft upon a thing used or processed for public benefit shall be punished with imprisonment for one to five years and a fine of 20,000 to 100,000 baht.

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Thailand – Malaysia shuttle train resumes service after bombings

The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) resumed train services between Thailand and Malaysia with the utmost security on Sunday after suspending the service for 28 days following two consecutive bombings that killed three people last month.

The SRT is running two round trips per day between Hat Yai in Songkhla province to Padang Besar in Malaysia’s Perlis state.

On December 3, freight train 707 traveling from Hat Yai to Padang Besar derailed and overturned in the Tha Pho subdistrict in the Sadao district after a bomb detonated on the tracks. The train’s four members of staff were not hurt but the train and tracks were heavily damaged.

Three days later, on December 6, three maintenance workers were killed and four were injured by another bomb blast while they were repairing the tracks from the first bombing.

After repairing the tracks, the SRT resumed the shuttle service on New Year’s Day and deployed soldiers, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) officers, and police along the railway to watch out for any suspicious activity.

Security on the railway will be heightened for the next three months and will be provided by officials from the Anothai Infantry Regiment Task Force, Than Mook Border Patrol Camp, Songkhla Police Special Operation Centre, 5th Infantry Regiment task force, and by police officers from Klong Ngae, Sadao and Padang Besar police stations.