AVIATION
Thai Airways International (THAI) has bowed to the inevitable again and is passing on higher costs to travellers in a new round of fuel-surcharge increases.
MOUNTING ANXIETY OVER VIETNAM
Thai exports are expected to remain intact although Vietnam, one of the country's exporting rivals especially for rice, has cut its official dong rate by almost 2% against the US dollar in what analysts called an effective devaluation.
The baht could see increased volatility if Vietnam is forced to devalue the dong, according to Amara Sriphayak, a senior director for the Bank of Thailand.
BROADCASTING
Shareholders of MCOT Plc finally endorsed the appointment of five new directors backed by the broadcaster's major shareholder, the Finance Ministry, at an extraordinary meeting yesterday.
FOREIGN INVESTMENT
The Foreign Business Act (FBA) amendments proposed by the previous military-backed government will not be pursued by the current administration, said Suwit Khunkitti, the deputy prime minister and industry minister.
A government coupon programme to help the poor cope with soaring food and energy costs could be run for six to 12 months, according to Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee.
BANKING
Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) yesterday introduced an Australian dollar deposit programme offering interest rates as high as 6.5% per year.
TrainTheTRAINER
Twenty-five years ago, I was trained to deliver training to people of other cultures. The assumption was that the target audience would be from a single culture, and so the focus was on putting training in terms of their values.
Local bankers are watching nervously events to the east, where Vietnam appears to be on the verge of a full-blown currency crisis.
HUMAN RESOURCES
Organisations should offer career planning to motivate and retain their employees, suggests Apiwut Pimolsaengsuriya, managing director of Orchid Slingshot, a consultant on organisational and people development.
AVIATION
Oneworld, the world's third largest airline alliance, says it has financially outperformed two rival blocs last year _ Star Alliance and SkyTeam _ with a higher average operating margin and record revenues.
Marriott Hotels (Thailand) expects its two new Courtyard hotels in Phuket and Cha-am will perform well even though current political unrest has affected the overall hospitality sentiment.
Thai Airways International has chosen BMC Software's IT Service Management system to improve its information technology operations, efficiency, customer experience and services.
AUTO PARTS
T. Krungthai Industries (TKT), a SET-listed automotive and electrical appliance parts manufacturer, sees revenues rising to at least one billion baht this year, notwithstanding the slowdown in economic growth due to rising inflation.
ENTERTAINMENT
Shellhut Entertainment Co, a local animation producer, aims to launch Thailand's first 3D animated TV series Shelldon, in worldwide markets, hoping to earn at least 500 million baht within three to five years.
ARCHITECTURE
Major border provinces along the Asian Highway Network will become new destinations for resort and hotel development in the near future after route expansion is completed by next year, according to Sunantapat Chalermpanth, chairman and executive principal of the Thai architecture firm KTGY Inter-Associates Ltd.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
The IT systems provider Forth has raised its revenue forecast to 7.33 billion baht this year from 7.14 billion.
INBrief
STOCKS :Trading in Thai Unique Coil Center Plc (TUCC) was briefly halted yesterday as pending sell order volume reached 30% of the company's paid-up capital, according to Somsri Nittayasakd, a vice president of the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
KHON KAEN / Phoenix Pulp and Paper Plc (PPPC), wholly owned by Siam Cement Group (SCG), is studying an investment of six to eight billion baht to raise pulp capacity by 100,000 tonnes to serve rising demand and cash in on exports.
Community malls are all the rage in the retail world, with many operators jumping on the bandwagon that the small-mall specialist Siam Future Development Plc got rolling with J Avenue and other such outlets.
