The Saha Group, the country's largest consumer-product conglomerate, aims to cut its oil consumption by 1% per year through new energy-conservation and alternative-energy programmes.
ENERGY
Energy and economics experts mostly agree that subsidising fuel prices is an unaffordable choice for the country. The disagreements start about when subsidies should be cut.
ENERGY
Gasohol E85 sold in Thailand will meet international standards, according to Metta Buntherngsuk, director-general of the Department of Energy Business.
RETAILING
The local traditional retail trade could disappear in the long run if the government fails to speed up the passage of laws to regulate the expansion of large, modern retailers, the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) warns.
STOCK MARKET
The Stock Exchange of Thailand may be forced to cut its headcount by at least one-third as it prepares to transform itself into a public company over the next three years.
PROPERTY
Surin Hill Development, a luxury property developer in Phuket, has launched a new project, the two-billion-baht Baan Thai Layan, targeting serious investors with at least 100 million baht.
PROPERTY
Supharat Group is confident that it can achieve its revenue target of 700 million baht this year from its three subsidiaries despite weakening consumer confidence, according to managing director Sumeth Sukapanpotharam.
ECONOMY
The Bank of Thailand should keep interest rates unchanged until the end of the year to help support economic growth, according to Usara Wilaipich, a senior economist of Standard Chartered Bank (Thai).
COMMODITIES
TOKYO : Natural rubber futures in Tokyo climbed to a 28-year high yesterday as crude oil surged above $141 a barrel, boosting production costs for synthetic rubber used to make car tyres.
ASIA FOCUS
Turkey, the land that bridges Asia and Europe, could emerge as a new investment destination for Thai businesses due to its geographical attractiveness and logistical advantages.
ASIA FOCUS
Turkey bridges and closes the gap between Asia and Europe. It has a population of 68 million people, more than 50% of whom are below age 25. Its largest city, Istanbul is home to more than 10 million inhabitants. As many as 98% of the country's population is Muslim but the government has remained resolutely secular.
ASIA FOCUS
Though the trade volume between Thailand and Turkey is still minuscule when compared to other countries, Thai investors should not overlook the opportunity on this new frontier, according to Panumas Malasee, director of the Thai Trade Center in Istanbul.
ASIA FOCUS : CHINA KNOWLEDGE
One month after the Wenchuan earthquake, the worst since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the focus is shifting from relief work to resettlement and reconstruction in the quake-hit area. The government is also pondering the earthquake's impact on future investment. To a large extent, it hinges on whether investors and travellers' confidence can be restored in Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan.
ASIA FOCUS
Asia and the world's emerging markets captured the top 10 rankings in terms of the fastest growing wealthy population in 2007, with Singapore in sixth place.
ASIA FOCUS
It is seldom that Thai companies get recognition outside their home turf and for a company that had for nearly two years faced the wrath of the Thai society, an accolade that it is among the best in its industry has a different level of meaning.
