Economic growth could fall below 6% this year due to soaring oil prices and political uncertainties, Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee said yesterday.
AUTOMOBILES
In an attempt to encourage car owners to shift to using natural gas for vehicles (NGV), 47 local insurance firms have agreed to offer 10% discounts on insurance premiums against vehicle damage caused by modifying to NGV.
PROPERTY
The condominium developers Ananda Development Co and Metrostar Property Plc have assured buyers that they will receive their units and that construction has already begun.
STOCK MARKET
A see-saw session closed yesterday with a rarely-seen zero change for the Stock Exchange of Thailand index.
RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
The Royal Irrigation Department is ready to begin four water development projects worth 17.5 billion baht later this year to restore confidence and generate additional water supplies.
TaxCORNER
The old expression, "Income tax returns are the most imaginative fiction being written" seems to be true when we look at the history of taxation.
Policymakers should give priority to addressing the problem of inflation rather than stimulating economic growth, according to economists at the Thailand Development Research Institute.
ECONOMY & INVESTING
Thailand's economic performance depends on how the current political crisis pans out, and the Thai stock market may yet to reach its nadir, according to Dr Anusorn Tamajai, dean of Rangsit University's Faculty of Economics.
INVESTING
Fancy adding Microsoft, Tesco, Google or McDonald's to your share portfolio? Phillip Securities is ready to help.
MARKETS
The new six-country Asian board should begin operations by mid-2009, comprising 180 stocks representing the 30 largest listed companies for each market.
Leading THE WAY
After a number of years of little or no activity in their non-performing loan (NPL) portfolios, 2007 turned out to be one of the busiest years for NPL activity in Thailand since the Asian economic crisis a decade earlier. Five banks held multiple-tranche public auctions, including one bank holding multiple auctions.
FUEL-EFFICIENT VEHICLES
The Industry Ministry is planning to offer tax incentives for Mercedes-Benz and BMW to build environmentally friendly diesel cars in Thailand.
The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) has expanded its pooling initiative to improve fuel consumption in the transport sector following successes on the Bangkok-Rayong route.
AGRIBUSINESS
Southern shrimp raisers have called on the government to revive black-tiger shrimp farming, saying the industry would offer more sustainable income than vannamei or white shrimp.
Charoen Pokphand Foods Plc (CPF) is working with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to promote meat safety with a system that allows consumers to obtain more information on their purchases.
BROADCASTING
Koolest Radio has officially introduced its English-language radio station Wave FM 88 with an aim to have one million listeners within 12 months.
AP Honda Co will invest 900 million baht to build the largest Honda safe riding centre in the Asia-Oceania region to support its road safety programme.
The lingerie manufacturer Sabina warns that political tensions and weak consumer confidence could affect third-quarter sales.
APPAREL
Lumyook (Millennium 2002) Co, the importer of Playboy merchandise and the operator of Chic Club retail shops, plans to add male underwear to its Playboy portfolio in the last quarter of this year with expected sales of 30 million baht.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Franchising is struggling in Thailand because most Asian businesspeople have difficulty transforming themselves into good followers, said Sunbelt Asia Company managing director Greg Lange.
The export prospects of Thai fashion products remain promising this year as Thai manufacturers have become more competitive against regional rivals, notably India and China, where labour costs have been rising.
The Thailand Securities Depository (TSD) will delay plans to speed up the clearing-and-settlement cycle by one year.
The Asian Institute of Technology's School of Management was Thailand's best-known business school internationally, according to the 2008 Eduniversal Official Section ranking.
INBrief
INSURANCE :Financially troubled Saha Life Insurance has received approval to continue with its business after it succeed in finding new investors, according to Chantra Purnariksha, the secretary-general of the Office of the Insurance Commission.
