Thailand News
Discover the most recent and relevant news from across Thailand on The Thaiger’s National News page. Covering a wide range of topics, including politics, business, crime, and lifestyle, our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
Stay informed about the latest developments in Thai society, economy, and culture, as well as updates on travel, tourism, and expat life. With The Thaiger, you’ll never miss out on the essential news that matters to you.
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Thai PM hints at a ‘solution nobody wanted’ if he can’t solve Cabinet squabbles
Yesterday’s mea culpa by the Thai PM Prayut, rather than providing a reassuring tone for the Thai electorate, has ended up stirring up rumours of another coup. Though the aim of the apology was to help mend the ongoing struggles within the Palang Pracharat Party over cabinet positions (let alone the other 19 parties involved in the pro-junta bloc), Prayut…
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The Tesla of Thailand takes on the big car-makers
There are less than 1,500 battery-powered vehicles in Thailand. Thai billionaire Somphote Ahunai wants to change that with his Energy Absolute. He envisions a total closed universe where he makes the cars, builds the charging stations, then provides the electricity to power the charging stations. The popularity of motorcycles and the busy streets of South East Asia cities are just…
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The Thai Baht in 2022 – a prediction
Please note: This is just ONE website’s predictions of the currencies in the future. It should not be taken as a serious representation of the state of the world currencies in 2022. Trying to find a few good numbers amid the bad we thought we’d look forward three years to some of the world’s major currencies and their projected performance…
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Tourism Authority of Thailand downgrades revenue from tourism in 2019
The Tourism Authority of Thailand is being forced to revise down its tourism revenue growth projections for 2019, but they’ve only cut their projections .5% from 10% growth predicted earlier this year, down to 9.5% growth instead. They still believe that the tourist numbers will settle and will reach 40.2 million for this year but this is down from their…
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Thai authorities moot compulsory travel insurance for travellers
PHOTO: South East Asia Backpacker Magazine The Thai Office of the Insurance Commission says they expect to introduce compulsory travel insurance for visitors to Thailand by the end of 2019. It would be charged to tourists who arrive without travel insurance and go into a ‘fund’ to be used to pay for repatriation costs in the event of misadventure. The…
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British travellers to Thailand make more insurance claims than any other country
According to a survey, the ‘Travel Smart Insurance Index’ recently released by the UK Post Office, more British travellers to Thailand made insurance claims for medical costs of repatriation after visiting Thailand than any other country. According to the report, the Post Office teamed up with the Centre for Economic & Business Research and analysed 17,295 claims from its Travel…
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Deputy PM expresses ‘regret’ over the brutal attack on political activist ‘Ja New’
Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwan has expressed regret over the brutal attack on political activist Sirawith Seritiwat, or Ja New, and ordered the national police chief, Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda, to hold an urgent meeting with the metropolitan police commissioner to discuss the incident and to intensify efforts to track down the perpetrators, as well as the mastermind behind the assault,…
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Fewer Nordic expats renewing their visas to stay in Thailand
by Gregers Møller Website ScandAsia.com and writer Gregers Møller reports that nordic expats – business people, on retirement or family-based Thai visas, renewing their visas this year – has dropped by around 10% this year. He reports “This is the first decline in 12 years. If the trend continues, there will only be 861 Nordic people on a business visa left…
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High-speed rail airport link contracts to be signed next month
The Eastern Economic Corridor Policy Committee has reported progress in the high-speed rail project to link three airports (Suvarnabhumi, U-Tapao and Don Mueang), and the Map Ta Phut industrial port development project. Contracts for both projects are expected to be signed between state firms and private concessionaires in July. The Eastern Economic Corridor Policy Committee, chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha,…
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TAT chief blames high baht for drop in tourists to Thailand
Thailand’s tourism numbers have been dropping over the past three months, against projections and when compared to year-on-year figures. And the blame game has started. TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand) chief Yuthasak Suphasorn is blaming the high value of the Thai baht for the worse than expected tourist figures. He admits that European visitors are being more careful over their money and…
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Thailand tops the poll for countries offering travellers the ‘host’ factor
“The perfect destination for travellers seeking to experience a warm welcome and immerse themselves in the local culture.” A recent poll by booking.com across 29 countries has found Thai people to be among the top nationalities who consider their country to be more hospitable than others. Thailand, along with Indonesia, Mexico, Taiwan and India, are the top five countries where…
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Students and driver injured in Petchabun bus incident
PHOTOS: Sawangbueang Sampan Thammasatan Rescue Eight people have sustained injuries after an incident between a motorbike and a bus carrying students in Petchabun, north-central Thailand. Emergency responders were notified of the accident in Baan Bueang Sampan, Petchabun this morning. Rescue workers arrived to find an overturned orange school bus on the road. Nearby was a damaged motorbike. Seven students and the…
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OPINION: A sad, but inevitable, farewell to The Nation daily
Sad news that after 48 years, The Nation Multimedia Group is shutting up shop on its daily newspaper. It’s final edition hit news stands around Thailand today (June 28). It wasn’t entirely unexpected and is a decision that every newspaper has either already made, is constantly reviewing or will have to make in the future, probably soon. The Nation Multimedia…
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A new beginning at 48 – The Nation prints its last newspaper today
The Nation daily newspaper, known for its independent and aggressive news reporting, publishes its last print edition today. After 48 years on the newsstands, one of Thailand’s only two English dailies, goes the way of many good banners before them. The Nation will continue as an online news source. The newspaper is the latest victim of the disruptive technology that…
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13 students injured in minivan/pickup collision in Chachoengsao – VIDEO
VIDEO: teenee8rews 13 students in a minivan have sustained injuries after a pickup truck, running through a red light, collided with their van in Chachoengsao, east of Bangkok. Chachoengsao Police were notified of the incident at the Nakoo Intersection, central Chachoengsao. Police and emergency responders arrived to find a damaged pickup truck and the minivan. Passersby helped to right the…
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Somkid blames sluggish formation of Thai government for GDP downgrading
Deputy PM Somkid Jatusripitak is saying the delay in forming Thailand’s next government caused the downgrading of the country’s GDP projections from 3.8% to 3.3%. The Bank of Thailand downgraded their forecasts at a meeting this morning. But Somkid noted that he was confident that Thailand’s GDP growth will pick up again once the new cabinet had been announced and…
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Trying to find a pulse in Thailand’s economic health
Thailand’s economy is south-east Asia’s wounded soldier as the newly elected Thai government tries to boost confidence and stimulate the economy after five years of military rule. Certainly the past 12 months have been the most challenging. GDP growth hit a four-year low of 2.8% for Q1 2019 and exports remain weak. Despite having unlimited power for half a decade,…
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16,467 kilograms of drugs destroyed on International Day against Drug Abuse
PHOTOS: The Police Magazine Thailand 16,467 kilograms of drugs were destroyed on the annual International Day against Drug, valued around 20 million baht. The Police Magazine Thailand reported yesterday, the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, that drugs has been destroyed by Ministry of Public Health at Bangpa, an Industrial Estate in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya. Drugs destroyed…
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Thai car manufacturers upbeat about sales
PHOTO: Chevrolet’s proposed SUV ‘Blazer’ to replace the Captiva Car sales for the first five months of this year stood at 437,722 equating to a year-on-year rise of just over 9%. Sales for May alone were 88,097 units, up 3.7%. But May’s growth slowed from the double-digit rise that the sector experienced between January and April, 2019. • By brand sales…
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Thai government announces hotel license amnesty
by Bill Barnett, c9hotelworks.com In a significant move by Thailand’s government, a hotel licensing amnesty program has been announced on a nationwide basis. Clearly pressure by hotel owners amidst an large-scale influx of non-licensed accommodation has spurred the action. Leading international legal advisors Baker McKenzie Thailand have issued an information alert on the program which we are publishing in full,…
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Surachate scores appointment to Police committee, as a civilian
Promoted, sacked, possibly re-instated, ditched and now appointed – the topsy turvy career of former policeman Surachate Hakparn. Thailand’s Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwon has confirmed that the former immigration chief Surachate Hakparn was appointed to a Police Commission sub-committee responsible for laws and regulations. He will be the only civilian appointed to the panel. The panel will be under the…
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Cloud looms over 41 Thai MPs in media-shares fiasco
PHOTO: Future Forward’s Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit The Constitutional Court is sitting today to consider whether they’ll accept petitions against 41 newly elected MPs accused by the Future Forward party of breaching media shareholding rules. There are 41 Members of Parliament accused of breaching the rules – 26 from the Palang Pracharath Party, 11 from Democrats, and one from Bhumjaithai Party, Action…
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SURVEY: Do you tip in Thailand?
Yesterday we asked readers to tell us what they do when it comes to tipping in Thailand. We noted that a lot of people’s feelings about tipping was related to where they come from and the customs they had on tipping in their home country. The question was… To tip or not to tip? Whilst the custom of tipping is…
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Thailand Post’s no-go list
Twenty years ago postal services were thought to he going out of fashion as email and social media began to replace people sending letters in the post. But that’s all changed now as online retail services are making the world’s postal services busier than ever. Including Thailand Post. If you’re wishing to avoid problems with Thailand Post and would like…
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Banned. Thai airports cracking down what you can take on board
Thailand’s CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) is urging airports to more strictly enforce security regulations that would prohibit a longer list of things being taken aboard. The upgraded ban covers foods, liquids and cosmetics that are now limited to containers that have a capacity of no more than 100 millilitres (a tenth of a litre). These items will be restricted and…
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Poll – Will the Thai Baht rise or fall (compared to other currencies)?
Yesterday The Thaiger polled our Facebook readers asking them… “Will the Thai baht continue to rise in value against many of the western currencies? Or has it peaked?” Your responses were very mixed but the result was a slight leaning towards the baht dropping, but only by 52% to 48%, from 585 votes. Thanks for participating! Here are few of…
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Tougher laws and bigger fines for taxi drivers who reject passengers
Mai dai! Taxi drivers who say ‘no’ to passengers will soon be liable to a fine of 5,000 baht. That’s up from 2,000 baht. Taxi drivers, especially in Bangkok, are notorious for rejecting fares when the passenger’s travel plans doesn’t suit the driver’s, especially at times near the change of shifts. The owner of the taxi will now face a…
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Polls show Thai voters sick of endless bickering over Cabinet posts
Exactly three months now since the national election for a new parliament and still no announcement of a parliamentary majority, government or ministries. But two surveys are a strong indication of Thai voter weariness over the drawn-out process of establishing a ministerial Cabinet. A NIDA (National Institute of Development Administration) poll shows most people (46.4%) complain that their elected representatives…
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Thailand’s exports plunge 5.8% in May
Thai exports have declined 5.8% for the month of May 2019. The value of May’s exports is 648 billion baht. The Commerce Ministry says in their report today that the contraction is mostly influenced by global factors including ongoing trade tensions between US and China and tighter global financial conditions, and specific factors of each country and region, political uncertainty…
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Thailand remains on Tier 2 for Trafficking in Persons
The Thai government doesn’t fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. The US has released the 2019 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report saying the Thai government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period so will remain on Tier 2. These efforts included identifying more victims, sentencing…
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