business
- Economy News
Minor International Chairman calls for major overhaul of Thailand’s ASQ
Minor International’s outspoken Chairman, Bill Heinecke, has penned an open letter to Thailand’s Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul. The thrust of the letter is that the current ASQ and general quarantine requirements and restrictions, is making any recovery of the country’s tourism and hospitality industry. Minor hotels have already serviced 2,500 guest as part of the Thai government’s Alternative State…
- Covid-19 News
China’s economy expected to grow 1.6% in 2020 – World Bank
Much the world is currently seeing continuing surges of new Covid-19 cases, some countries are well into their 2nd wave. Meanwhile China is quietly getting it’s industrial engine and economy going again as new cases. In fact China’s number of ‘active cases’ has been dropping since April, and now is fewer than 200 total cases across the country. Along with…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today | Business people exemptions, road checkpoints, Phuket delay | October 6
Daily TV news on The Thaiger. Up to date information, delivered to you, free. Thai government considers easing restrictions for foreign business travellers The Thai government is considering further easing entry restrictions for foreign travellers coming to conduct business in the Kingdom. Up to date, around 11,000 businesspeople and work permit holders have been granted entry by the Centre for…
- Tourism News
Global tourism plunges up to 80% in 2020
Internationally, tourism will plunge between 60 – 80% by the end of the year. The UN World Tourism Organisation makes the forecast in their latest report. The prediction, broad and probably conservative, will put millions of workers in the world’s tourism industry, out of work. In Thailand, with its reliance on tourism as a significant contributor to its GDP, will see…
- Expats
Expat shift drives changes in Bangkok’s condo market
Thailand’s dominant working expat nationality in past decades has been Japanese, currently making up 18% of expatriates in the country. But, while Japanese expatriate numbers are decreasing, a CBRE report notes that Chinese and Filipinos are on the rise. There were 28,560 Japanese expats in Thailand as of Q3 2020, just ahead of the Chinese expat contingent at 25,811. As China’s manufacturing has…
- Health
Has Thailand’s suicide rate increased due to Covid-19 restrictions? – VIDEO
Another Thaiger video on Thaiger TV. Please subscribe. Before Covid, around the world every 40 seconds someone lost their life to suicide and nearly 800,000 people die due to suicide every year, according to statistics from the WHO. In Thailand, suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-29 year olds, after road fatalities. Now, an apparent rise…
- Things To Do
Top 10 things that changed in Thailand during the Covid outbreak
Things have changed. In some cases they’ve changed a lot and may never be the same again. Many people are suffering as a result of the impacts of lockdowns and the border closures. Entire industries, like aviation and entertainment, have been profoundly affected. Some people are being forced to re-invent their lives as a result. Fears over Covid-19 are causing…
- Business News
Thai Vietjet introduce new “Deluxe” product for domestic routes in Thailand
Thai Vietjet, which currently operates 13 domestic routes within Thailand, is launching a new “Deluxe” product, starting from 999 baht. The “Deluxe” tickets will include 7 kilos of carry-on and 20 kilos of checked luggage (currently an additional charge), as well as seat selection and priority check-in. Date, route and flight changes are also permitted 1 time, free of charge.…
- Economy News
70% of Phuket’s tourism businesses are closed, many for good
Most tourism businesses in Phuket have closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and they probably won’t be up and running again until foreign tourists are let back in Thailand. Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew says around 70% of tourism businesses have closed, most of them just temporarily, but some have shut down permanently. But the statistics are not quite that simple,…
- Business News
Struggling airlines to get reprieve through small loans, extension to fuel tax cut
Airlines in Thailand are being offered a financial lifeline, as the Government Savings Bank announces soft loans for carriers left struggling as a result of the current Covid-19 ‘disruption’. Nation Thailand reports that the GSB is offering the loans over a 60 month period, with an annual interest rate of 2%. Chairman Patchara Anuntasilpa says the proposal will shortly be…
- Tourism News
Phuket’s governor calls for help in restoring island’s economy
The governor of Phuket has likened the southern province to a “patient in a coma”, as he pleads for help to restore its devastated economy. According to a report in the Bangkok Post, Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew was addressing a Public Health Association forum, where he highlighted the economic crisis caused by the ongoing ban on international tourists. The island’s…
- Bangkok News
First airplane food cafe, now Thai Airways opens fried dough stand
Since not much is happening in the air, Thai Airways is running new business schemes on the ground. For their newest venture, the company opened a deep fried dough street food stand. They say the fried dough with taro custard is an “award winning” recipe. Thai Airways has already opened a pop-up restaurant serving “in flight” food to customers seated…
- Pattaya News
Pattaya hotel chases up Chinese businessmen for 7 million in rent
The Chinese directors of a company, who had rented a 54 room hotel in Pattaya, and not paid rent for 7 months, will now have to pay an estimated 40 million baht compensation to the owners. It appears that the Thai ‘shelf’ company that signed the contract, is still responsible for completing the contract, leaving 2 Thai nominees potentially liable…
- Business News
Bangkok airport security staff file lawsuit over pay cuts
“They saw us as security guards and looked down on us since we had little education, they thought they could trick us into signing those papers.” Some security staff at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport say they were tricked into pay cuts claiming they were told to sign new contract or they could lose their jobs. 10 staff members filed a lawsuit against ASM…
- World News
A Land Bridge or the Kra Canal for Thailand?
OPINION by guest writer Tony P Restall Why the land bridge idea will never work Much has been written about the long-proposed Thai or Kra Canal and the on and off decision to proceed, or not. Over the recent years several high-level committees have examined the economic benefits to establish a water connection by means of a canal linking the East…
- Phuket News
Phuket hotels fighting for their lives as domestic tourism fails to support the island
In the wake of last weekend’s ministerial talkfest and discussions with local industry players on the island, Bill Barnett paints a bleak picture of a tourist island in freefall. All the shops, restaurants and hotels can’t remain empty, or merely keep their doors open with a handful of domestic customers, forever. Phuket’s hotel industry is reaching breaking point and drastic economic support…
- Pattaya News
Pattaya businesses say they desperately need foreign tourists to stay open
“If borders stay closed to international tourists for another 6 months, nearly the entire tourism industry in Pattaya could collapse.” Pattaya needs tourists. The city’s famous Walking Street could go under if international tourists aren’t let back in the country, according to the resident business owners. Many shops have already closed, after re-opening in June when the restrictions were lifted,…
- Business News
Thai Airways announces extra repatriation flights for European and Asian cities
The executive vice president of Thai Airways, Wiwat Piyawiroj, says the national carrier is introducing 18 repatriation flights to cities in Asia and Europe. The flights will permit additional foreign nationals in Thailand to return to their home countries, while also allowing repatriating Thais or eligible foreigners to return to the Kingdom on the return flights. The flights are aimed…
- Business News
Evidence of Thai Airways’ corruption, mismanagement, sent to Finance Ministry
The Finance Ministry has received 18 documents that show evidence of corruption and mismanagement at Thai Airways. The evidence was submitted by a Transport Ministry panel on corruption, pending a full investigation into “shady dealings” at the battered national carrier. The airline is currently undergoing a rehabilitation process, having filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year. It’s understood the former…
- Northern Thailand News
Public concerned with costs of MRT’s Isaan project
Money is a main concern for businesses and investors involved in a project by the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand to construct an electric light rail train line in the Isaan province Nakhon Ratchasima. Some say MRT should reconsider the type of train planned for the project and go for a more cost efficient option. Province’s proposed MRT Green…
- Business News
Company drafts THAI’s rehab plan, faces criticism
The rehabilitation plan for Thai Airways International, or THAI, isn’t looking great. It was presented to the Central Bankruptcy Court yesterday and creditors questioned the expertise of the company chosen to draft the plan. EY Corporate and Advisory Services, appointed by THAI, faced criticism regarding their technical experience when it comes to drafting a plan to restructure a company, especially…
- Bangkok News
Thousands of job applicants line up Bangkok hotel before sunrise
Not hundreds, but thousands of job applicants showed up to a Bangkok hotel before the sun came up early yesterday morning. Some slept outside to be first in line to file an application at the Miracle Grand Convention Hotel in the Lak Si district. By 4am, 5,000 people were waiting outside the hotel. The hotel advertised 300 vacant positions and…
- Crime News
Allegedly drunk woman tries to run down Bangkok pedestrians
A 37 year old businesswoman tried to run over pedestrians with her car near Bangkok’s Khae Rai Intersection and Tao Poon MRT station, after learning her business was embezzled out of millions of baht. She was allegedly drunk at the time. Bang Sue police were notified of the incident in the early hours of this morning and tracked down the…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand’s tourist magnets deserted and desperate
The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, bird flu, SARS, political upheavals, passenger boats sinking. None of these have had anywhere near the effect of this year’s Covid-19 pandemic in Thailand. Visitor numbers, even from the usually enthusiastic Tourism Authority of Thailand, are expected to plummet up to 80% for the year. The other 20% mostly visited the Kingdom in the first…
- Covid-19 News
Thai economy won’t need a bailout from the IMF
The Thai economy won’t need a bailout from the International Monetary Fund, although the GDP growth for 2020 may end up being the lowest in the region. The Governor of the Bank of Thailand, Veerathai Santipraphob says the Thai economy is “strong enough”. Speaking at a seminar entitled “Post-Covid Economic Direction”, Veerathai noted that, although Thailand has managed to control…
- Economy News
Thailand tries 2-prong strategy to get perishables to China
Thailand is bypassing supply-chain roadblocks to deliver its perishables – mainly agricultural and food products – to China, its biggest market in Asia. Since Thailand shares no border with China, perishable goods like fruit and vegetables have traditionally been sent from Thai farms and warehouses by truck, going through either Vietnam or Laos. Ships and planes are also used, but…
- Business News
Thai Airways unlikely to resume flights in August
Anyone expecting the beleaguered Thai Airways to resume its flight schedule in August should not hold their breath. That’s the word from reliable sources in the industry, who predict the national carrier will not take to the skies again until September at the earliest. A report in TTR Weekly says the airline, currently undergoing a rehabilitation process, has extended its…
- Economy News
Thai Airways creates “survival team”
Beleaguered national flag carrier Thai Airways has created a so-called “survival team” to work out a business plan to support its debt rehabilitation, according to a source at the airline. The company filed for bankruptcy protection on May 19. The survival team is tasked with producing a business plan, effective through October 31. The airline’s acting president has ordered the…
- Technology News
Thailand Post introducing “smart” technology
Thailand Post says it is switching to “smart” mailboxes in an effort to make the state enterprise more hi-tech. The company says it’s working with the state-owned telecoms company CAT Telecom to produce the mailboxes that will use “Internet of Things” technology to detect when parcels are deposited. A report in Nation Thailand today explains that the boxes will be…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand producing over 4 million face masks a day
An increase in production facilities means Thailand is now producing 4.2 million face masks a day, leading to a growing surplus. A report in Nation Thailand says Internal Trade Director Vichai Pochanakit says producers in China are once again exporting the raw materials needed for mask production. The Thai government is now looking at ways to manage a daily surplus…
