Thailand Morning News Roundup For March 1

Thailand Morning News Roundup For March 1
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Welcome to the Thailand morning news roundup by AEC News Today, your one stop for Thailand news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities.

 

Thailand morning news

 

New Thai tax law doubles alcohol prices
In response to a new tax law that doubles the tax rate on Thai liquor, Thai social media has questioned whether the ruling junta has exhausted its budget.
– Prachatai English

Thailand’s PMI unchanged at 50.6 in February
The Nikkei Thailand Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index, or PMI, came in at 50.6 in February, unchanged from January’s reading.
– Nikkei Asian Review

Income tax cuts approved as EEC sweetners
THE CABINET yesterday approved the Finance Ministry’s proposal to cut personal income tax for executives, experts and researchers working in the three Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) development-project provinces of Chon Buri, Rayong and Chachoengsao.
– The Nation

Thailand’s share of world GDP may shrink
THAILAND is projected to become the world’s 25th-largest economy in 2050, and as emerging economy will overtake some of the advanced economies, but it will fall behind neighbouring Vietnam and the Philippines, a PwC report says.
– The Nation

Thailand’s January Exports Buoy Gradual Economic Recovery
Thailand’s economy continued its gradual pace of recovery in January, with public expenditure and export growth strengthening but weakness in other indicators, according to the monthly report from the Bank of Thailand.
– Hellinic Shipping News

Revenue Dept eyes Bt100 bn in tax on online transactions
THE REVENUE Department expects to be collecting Bt100 billion from online transactions via indirect taxes over the next five years.
– The Nation

Myanmar education offers Thailand a lesson in pluralism
In a sign of what the future may offer, two major reports on Myanmar’s education system released by Save the Children and the Asia Foundation underline what can be achieved by ethnic communities educating themselves. The reports detail the rise of ethnic basic-education providers (EBEP) in Myanmar, a local response to the policy of ultra-nationalist “Burmanisation” – equivalent to ongoing “Thai-ification” here.
– Prachatai English

Thailand Insurance Market Liberalization: Relaxation of Foreign Shareholding Limits
The long-term growth forecast for Thailand’s insurance industry is quite positive, with increasing income, an ageing population, low market penetration rates, increased market liberalization in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), and supportive regulatory framework all expected to contribute to double-digit growth for the industry over the next few years.
– Lexology

Thailand ranks among countries with slowest mobile internet
Downloading music on your smartphone is a pain, and streaming videos is nearly impossible. So it’s no surprise that Thailand ranks near the bottom in terms of mobile internet speed, according to a chart released this month.
– Coconuts Bangkok

AIS partners with Netflix in Thailand
Netflix, world’s leading internet television network and AIS (Advanced Info Service) announced their partnership. This is Netflix’s first partnership with a mobile network in Thailand, enabling the largest mobile operator in the country to offer its customers the world-class and exclusive entertainment.
– The Nation

Saudi Arabia says travel ban to Thailand still in place
Claims that Saudi Arabia has lifted restrictions on travel to Thailand have been dismissed as untrue by a senior official.
– Thompson Reuters Zawya

Imperial Couple depart for weeklong visit to Vietnam, Thailand
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko arrived in the capital of Vietnam on Tuesday evening on their first trip to the Southeast Asian country where they will meet with the Vietnamese wives and children of former Japanese soldiers to promote goodwill and soothe some of the wounds left over from World War II.
– The Japan Times

With high standards in place, Thailand moves toward MICE sustainability
Hot on the heels of a year of strong and consistent growth, Thailand’s MICE industry looks onward and upward toward new levels of standardisation.
– CIM News Magazine

Thailand feels the Trump effect
I arrived at Government House, the headquarters of Thailand’s military government, on a sweltering afternoon in mid-February. After convincing an assault-rifle packing solider that I wasn’t a confused tourist, I found my way to the office of the government’s spokesman.
– The Washington Post

DSI set to summon 10 Dhammakaya protesters amid crackdown
THE DEPARTMENT of Special Investigation (DSI) has enough evidence to summon 10 protesters, including monks and laymen, and has identified 20 individuals who helped with crowd mobilisation at Pathum Thani’s Khlong Luang Market, DSI deputy chief Songsak Raksaksakul said yesterday.
– The Nation

Thailand, Southern Rebels Agree to Framework for Limited Ceasefire
Negotiators from Thailand’s military government and a panel representing insurgent groups achieved a small breakthrough in exploratory talks by agreeing Tuesday to a framework for a limited ceasefire in the Thai Deep South, according to officials from both sides.
– Benar News

AIT eyes revenue growth on govt projects
Advanced Information Technology “conservatively” expects its revenue to grow by about 15 per cent to Bt5 billion this year, thanks to higher project backlogs and more government tenders coming up.
– The Nation

Popularity of bullfighting grows in South
BULLFIGHTING has been booming in Thailand’s South, attracting tourists and stimulating local economies, amid animal-right activists’ concerns.
– The Nation

Government of Thailand offering scholarships to SKN
The Government of Thailand is offering postgraduate scholarships to candidates from St. Kitts and Nevis, for studies in Thailand for the 2017 academic year.
– The Nation

Shiseido and King Power Thailand target millenial jetsetters
Shiseido Travel Retail has partnered with King Power Thailand to deliver a series of NARS activations in Bangkok, aimed at promoting the brand’s first ever Traveller’s Exclusive collection – NARSissist Jetsetter.
– Duty Free News International

 

 

Feature photo: John Le Fevre

 

 

The Thailand morning news roundup is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

 

 

 

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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.

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