Track Thailand's economy in English — business, trade, finance and market news, covered by Thai PBS World, Thailand's public broadcasting service.
After bolting the doors for two years following the outbreak of the pandemic, Thailand decided to fully reopen the country in 2022, removing the COVID-19 restrictions that had throttled tourism, a key engine of economic growth. Before fully reopening, Thailand had begun a carefully planned, phased and controlled return of international tourists beginning July 1,
After months of prevarication, Thailand’s telecom regulator gave the green light in October for the merger of two major operators — True Corporation (True) and Total Access Communication (Dtac). The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) voted 3:2 to allow the merger of the country’s second- and third-largest mobile operators, citing its lack of authority to
Oil palm growers across Thailand plan to submit simultaneous petitions to authorities in each province, seeking government help to boost the prices of raw oil palm seed, which have fallen to an average of 4 baht/kg. The growers are complaining that, while the prices of raw palm seed continue to plummet, from a peak of
A 17.8-billion-baht offer by SCBX, the holding company of Siam Commercial Bank, for a majority stake in Bitkub Online was supposed to be the deal of the year in 2022. The ambitious foray into the world of digital assets, however, unravelled in months amid cryptocurrency firms going bankrupt and digital assets seeing a sharp erosion
Car fuel expenses can be claimed as income tax deductions under the government’s “Shop Dee Mee Kuen” economic stimulus scheme, from January 1st until February 15th. According to Revenue Department Director-General Lawaron Saengsanit, motorists and motorcyclists can use fuel purchase receipts, issued by registered gas stations, up to a maximum of 40,000 baht as tax
The Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has asked public prosecutors to sue Dr. Boon Vanasin, former chairman of the Thonburi Healthcare Group (THG), for payment of a 2.3 million baht fine. The SEC imposed the fine on Dr. Vanasin after finding him guilty of violating Section 240 of the 1992 Securities and
Thailand’s Energy Policy Committee has decided to increase the retail price of NGV for vehicles by 1 baht/kg, to 17.59 baht, effective from Friday, according to Energy Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow. He said that the price increase will not affect taxis in PTT Public Company’s “Same Breath” programme, under which they can buy the NGV at
The Bangkok Mass Transit System (BTS), the operator of the Green Line sky train service, has been urged to end its continuous advertising, demanding the settlement of a large debt owed to it by Krungthep Thanakom, an investment arm of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. Krungthep Thanakom owes BTS 20 billion baht for operations and maintenance
The Pheu Thai Party has made a big election promise: if it becomes the ruling party next year, Thailand’s minimum daily wage will rise to 600 baht by 2027. The election pledge has divided opinion and sparked a heated debate on whether this promise is reasonable or will open a can of worms. “Our policy
The private sector will formally ask the government to peg the electricity rate at 4.72 baht per unit from January until April, claiming that any increase of electricity prices will heavily impact business and industry, which are just recovering after the pandemic. Kriangkrai Thiennukul, president of the Federation of Thai Industries, representing the Joint Standing
The Thai private sector has expressed serious concerns over the opposition Pheu Thai Party’s ambitious plan to increase the daily minimum wage to 600 baht by 2027, claiming that this substantial rise will drive up the cost of production by about 70%. On behalf of the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking, Sanan
The Thai economy grew 4.5 per cent year on year in the third quarter of 2022, exceeding market expectations. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the third quarter nearly doubled from 2.3 per cent in the first quarter and 2.5 per cent in the second, according to the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC),
