Thailand Morning News For October 19

Facebook denies PM-Zuckerberg meeting
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s hopes of meeting Facebook chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg look to have hit the rocks as a Facebook spokesman said no such plans are on the drawing board.
— Bangkok Post

Facebook says Zuckerberg has no plan to visit Thailand
SOCIAL MEDIA giant Facebook has brushed aside any suggestion that its co-founder and major shareholder, Mark Zuckerberg, plans to visit Thailand later this month.
— The Nation

Thai Sept car exports at 2-year high as Mid-East demand recovers
Thailand’s car exports hit their highest in two years in September as demand from the Middle East rebounded, boosting a sector that accounts for about 10 percent of the trade-dependent economy.
— Reuters

Thai competitiveness and macro-economic stability improves on WEF listing
According to a Facebook message from the Bank of Thailand (BoT) the World Economic Forum (WEF) has raised Thailand from 13th to 9th on its list of countries’ macro-economic stability.
— NNT

Banks’ QR payment poised to exit sandbox
The Bank of Thailand plans to allow quick response (QR) payment technology tested by more than two banks to exit from the regulatory sandbox once the banks agree on mutual conditions as practical guidelines after the service is commercially rolled out.
— Bangkok Post

Cybersecurity threats mount in assessment for next year
HIDDEN threats to the privacy of personal data on mobile, cloud and social media services will be a key concern in the cybersecurity realm next year, experts say.
— The Nation

Thailand, U.S. to form joint panel on trade, investment
The Thai Chamber of Commerce will set up a Thai-U.S. joint committee to drive trade between the two countries. The work of the committee will be an expansion of Thai-U.S. economic cooperation, following Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s visit to the U.S
— NBT World (video)

CDC ready to submit more organic laws as EC ready for political parties to return
The Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC) is poised to submit its organic law on the Senate to the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) on November 21 with the Election Commission (EC) saying it is ready put out a guideline for political party activity.
— NNT

NBTC ex-com agrees to lower license fee rates for digital TV operators
The executive committee of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has agreed to reduce the license fees of digital television broadcasters to help ease their financial burden following complaints of operational losses.
— Thai PBS

80,000 police to be deployed at main funeral site
Around 80,000 police officers will be deployed at the cremation site in Bangkok and surrounding areas.
— NNT

5 students, 3 human rights defenders charged for breaching junta order
A military court has accepted a case against eight individuals who participated in seminar last year criticising the junta-backed charter.
— Prachatai English

Police reform committee to present performance reports next week
The government-appointed police reform committee expects to present its performance report next week.
— NNT

Govt vows to flush out flood water
The government has set a deadline for the Royal Irrigation Department (RID) to push massive amounts of runoff from the North out to sea – seven days.
— Bangkok Post

‘Spider’ cards to crawl out from next June
The first Spider cards for the common ticket system will be available by next June, but will initially only be used to link the Airport Rail Link and public bus services, Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith says.
— Bangkok Post

Fishy deal detected in Nakhon Si Thammarat’s CCTV procurement scheme
The procurement of 1,400 CCTV security system cameras worth 196 million baht by provincial administration in Nakhon Si Thammarat province is turning fishy after alleged mal-practices are detected.
— Thai PBS

CPF announces antimicrobials policy
Charoen Pokphand Foods Plc (CPF) announced a new policy on the use of antimicrobials in its livestock and aquaculture businesses as a response to public demand for more stringent food safety standards.
— Bangkok Post

Labor Ministry promoting Safety Thailand
The Ministry of Labor is continuing to utilize the Pracharat mechanism to drive the Safety Thailand policy.
— NBT World (video)

Son of Thailand’s ex-PM Thaksin charged with money-laundering
The only son of fugitive former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been formally charged with money-laundering, the Department of Special Investigations told Reuters on Wednesday.
— Reuters

Cabinet approves laws to allow stock conversion
The Cabinet has given its approval to four draft laws to open up stock conversion to entice investment and business development.
— NNT

Nok Air ‘upgrades’ fleet range
Nok Air has secured an agreement from Boeing to upgrade the flying range of some of its Boeing 737-800s to allow it to operate over a longer distance.
— Bangkok Post

Several provinces remain hit hard by severe flooding
Several provinces in the upper part of Thailand remain inundated as a result of continued downpours in the region.
— NNT

Surveillance drones to be deployed to help ground forces
The army will deploy surveillance drones in the Deep South in 2018 fiscal year, Deputy Defence Minister Udomdej Seetabutr said Wednesday (Oct 18).
— Thai PBS

Kanchanaburi tourism operators to have more business opportunities with China
Tourism operators in Kanchanaburi province have been urged to register with the Department of Tourism Business and Guide Registration to increase their business opportunities with China. ///
— NBT World (video)

Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang ready for services during royal cremation ceremonies
The Airports of Thailand Plc has set up a coordination centre each at Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports to provide convenience for people travelling by air during the period for the royal cremation ceremonies, said AoT president Nitinai Sirismatthakarn.
— Thai PBS

Danish man arrested for operating a hotel booking scam
The Tourist Police Bureau on Wednesday (Oct 18) announced the arrest of a Danish national accused of having cheated more than 400 foreign tourists, mostly westerners, by opening a fake website to accept advance hotel bookings.
— Thai PBS

Survey finds Thais more trusting online
Thai consumers are less sceptical of the content they see and more accepting of brands online, says market research agency Kantar TNS.
— Bangkok Post

Feature photo John Le Fevre
Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Thailand morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Thailand news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Thailand Morning News For October 19 added by John Le Fevre on October 19, 2017
View all posts by John Le Fevre →

Bio
Latest Posts

John Le Fevre

Thailand editor at AEC News Today

John is an Australian national with more than 40 years experience as a journalist, photographer, videographer, and copy editor.

He has spent extensive periods of time working in Africa and throughout Southeast Asia, with stints in the Middle East, the USA, and England.

He has covered major world events including Operation Desert Shield/ Storm, the 1991 pillage in Zaire, the 1994 Rwanda genocide, the 1999 East Timor independence unrest, the 2004 Asian tsunami, and the 2009, 2010, and 2014 Bangkok political protests.

In 1995 he was a Walkley Award finalist, the highest awards in Australian journalism, for his coverage of the 1995 Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola outbreak.

Prior to AEC News Today he was the deputy editor and Thailand and Greater Mekong Sub-region editor for The Establishment Post, predecessor of Asean Today.

In the mid-80s and early 90s he owned JLF Promotions, the largest above and below the line marketing and PR firm servicing the high-technology industry in Australia. It was sold in 1995.