Ford unveiling new Ranger and Everest at International Motor Expo
Dec 01. 2020
By The Nation
Ford’s recently launched new Ranger and Everest, as well as a Mustang Special Edition, are being showcased on the Ford stand at the 37th Thailand International Motor Expo at Impact Challenger Hall 1, Muang Thong Thani from December 2-13.
Ford is offering a number of special promotions during the expo. Every purchase of the new Ranger and Everest with 2-litre engine also comes with Ford’s 10-Year Driveline Care Programme covering the vehicle’s driveline components for 10 years or 150,000 kilometres, whichever occurs first.
Visitors can also get an up-close view of Ford Thailand Racing (FTR)’s customised and modified Ranger pickup truck, which recently bagged two podium finishes at the Thailand Super Series 2020.
Wichit Wongwattanakan, managing director of Ford Thailand
“The modified FTR Ranger race truck and Mustang Special Edition to commemorate its 55th Anniversary help provide an extra dose of excitement to the Ford stand that we know Expo attendees will appreciate,” said Wichit Wongwattanakan, managing director of Ford Thailand.
“We’re also confident that our upgraded new Ranger and Everest, offered with our Ford 10-Year Driveline Care Programme, will attract a lot of customer interest at the expo and our Ford dealerships across the country.”
This year’s Motor Expo expected to generate Bt35 billion in revenue
Dec 01. 2020
By The Nation
Organisers expect 25,000 to 30,000 cars and 5,000 motorcycles to be booked at this year’s Motor Expo, which is expected to attract as many as 1 million visitors and more than Bt35 billion in spending.
Kwanchai Paphatphong, organising chairman of the 37th Motor Expo, said the event held under the concept of “Whatever Changes Will Be… Move On” features 31 auto brands from eight countries and 21 motorcycle brands from 10 nations as well as a boat show and loads of auto accessories.
New car launches at the event include the world premiere of Nissan Navara Pro Series, the Asia launch of Kia Carnival and Thailand launch of the BMW 4 Series, Peugeot 2008 SUV and Porsche Panamera.
Every booth is expected to offer promotions, while the organiser has prepared many special offers such as “Buy a Car Win a Car”, “Buy a Ticket Win a Car”, “Buy Merchandise to Win a Car”, “Buy a Motorbike Win a Big Bike”, “View Motor Expo Online to Win a Prize” etc.
The 37th Motor Expo runs from Wednesday to December 13 at IMPACT Challenger, Muang Thong Thani.
Mercedes-Benz offers more affordable, locally assembled options at this year’s Motor Expo
Dec 01. 2020
By The Nation
Much to the delight of car enthusiasts, Mercedes-Benz has brought more than 25 luxury vehicles to the 37th Motor Expo, which kicks off on Wednesday.
The line-up covers several segments under the Mercedes brand, including compact cars, contemporary luxury, dream cars and SUV, as well as high-performance vehicles under the Mercedes-AMG brand and plug-in hybrid cars from the EQ brand, catering to every lifestyle.
Highlights include the locally assembled edition of the Mercedes-Benz GLA 200 AMG Dynamic, a second-generation compact SUV that offers more space and additional safety features, and the sleeker, sportier Mercedes-Benz A-Class.
The automaker is offering a special yearend deal at this year’s Motor Expo, which will run until December 13 at the Impact Challenger Hall 1 in Muang Thong Thani.
Customers who purchase Mercedes-Benz and Mercedes-AMG vehicles (participating models only), with deliveries until December 31, will receive an iPhone 12 worth more than Bt32,000.
Roland Folger, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz (Thailand), said the two new locally assembled vehicles – the Mercedes-Benz GLA 200 AMG Dynamic and the Mercedes-Benz A-Class – are expected to boost sales in the luxury car market at the end of the year.
Roland Folger, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz (Thailand) Company Limited
He said these locally assembled versions are being offered at highly competitive prices, which will surely attract new customers.
The company is confident that new GLA and A-Class as well as other premium models showcased at the expo will receive an overwhelming welcome, he added.
The new Mercedes-Benz GLA 200 AMG Dynamic is priced at Bt2,399,000, while the Mercedes-Benz A-Class comes in two models: the Mercedes-Benz A 200 Progressive, priced at Bt1,990,000 and Mercedes-Benz A 200 AMG Dynamic, priced at Bt2,150,000.
EU helps set up online customs transit system to boost ASEAN trade
Dec 02. 2020The ASEAN Customs Transit System has been launched, and offers an online customs transit management system for Southeast Asia. — Photo Courtesy ASEAN Customs Transit System
By Viet Nam News/ANN
JAKARTA — The online ASEAN Customs Transit System was launched yesterday to accelerate trade in goods by road within Southeast Asia.
Being developed with the support of the European Union, ACTS is simplifying the movement of goods across the region, making it more efficient and cost-effective.
Following trials in Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Việt Nam, the system has now been formally launched.
The first successful ACTS transit movement occurred on October 23-24 when a truck travelled from Singapore via Malaysia to Thailand.
The system will soon be available in Myanmar, and, depending on business needs, may later be expanded to Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Now transporters can make a single customs transit declaration that covers the transport of goods across multiple countries, without the need to make repeated customs declarations or change vehicles at each border.
Special arrangements allow reliable traders to load their goods at their own premises in the country of departure, and to deliver the goods to their own premises at other places.
Faster customs clearance at borders helps accelerate transit and reduce the time and expenses needed for carrying out regional trade in goods.
Dato Lim Jock Hoi, the secretary-general of ASEAN, said: “The implementation of the ASEAN Customs Transit System plays a vital role in facilitating seamless movement of goods in the region. I believe the system will be an excellent tool in enhancing ASEAN’s trade and production networks as well as establishing a more unified market for its firms and consumers.
“ACTS could also support post-COVID recovery to accelerate the transit movement of medical supplies, vaccines and personal protective equipment within the member states.”
The system is managed by a permanent ACTS central management team based in the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia, with support from the EU-funded ARISE Plus programme.
In 2017 ASEAN economic ministers set the twin goals of reducing trade transaction costs by 10 per cent by 2020 and doubling intra-ASEAN trade between 2017 and 2025. ACTS has been developed to realise this goal to allow businesses to lodge e-transit declarations directly with ASEAN customs authorities and track the movement of their goods from loading to delivery.
” ACTS is a remarkable achievement that is testament to the strong, dynamic and long-standing partnership between ASEAN and the European Union,” Koen Doens, director general for international co-operation and development at the European Commission, said.
“The EU is proud to have joined ASEAN to make ACTS a reality, providing European technical expertise and 10 million euros since 2012.”
ARISE Plus has provided extensive ACTS training for stakeholders in the public and private sectors, including customs authorities, government transport agencies, freight forwarders, transporters, banks, and insurance companies. — VNS
China refutes Australia’s claim of tweeting ‘fake image’
Dec 02. 2020In this undated file photo, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying addresses a press briefing in Beijing. (PHOTO/CHINA DAILY)
By China Daily/ANN
BEIJING – A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson on Tuesday refuted Australia’s accusation that a Chinese official had tweeted a “fake image” about the Australian military’s atrocities committed in Afghanistan.
“The accusation is false in itself as the image was never a real one, but a computer-generated illustration by a young artist. The concept is completely different,” spokesperson Hua Chunying told a routine press briefing, adding that the Australian side was trying to shift blames by hyping up the issue.
She pointed out that the image was based on a confirmed inquiry report by the Australian Defence Force (ADF). “Although it is an illustration, it reflects facts.”
On Nov 19, the ADF released the findings of the inquiry that heard testimonies from more than 400 witnesses. The inquiry found that “credible evidence” proved that special-forces soldiers murdered 39 prisoners, farmers and civilians during the war in Afghanistan.
Citing an interview of the image’s creator, Hua said what Australian soldiers had done was much more brutal than what’s been portrayed in the image.
When dealing with issues involving China, some people always insist on the “I can, but you are not allowed” mentality, Hua said.
She cited examples from the fields of technology and economy: “I can have the 5G, but you are not allowed”; “I can take you down economically, but you are not allowed”; and “I can openly criticize you, but you are not allowed.”
Such an attitude reveals the arrogance and hypocrisy of some people and exposes the real purpose, which is to deprive China’s right to speak out the truth, the spokesperson said.
“I hope these people can view China and China’s development calmly and rationally, take constructive actions and work with China to resolve differences, and jointly maintain the healthy development of bilateral relations,” said Hua.
HK-S’pore travel bubble deferred anew as HK sees 82 new cases
Dec 02. 2020
By Wang Zhan China Daily/ANN
HONG KONG – Hong Kong’s air travel bubble with Singapore has been postponed until next year as the special administrative region reported 82 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday.
The Commerce and Economic Development Bureau said in a statement that the governments of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Singapore will review the arrangement in late December.
The decision to defer further the travel bubble, which should have been launched on Nov 22, was made due to Hong Kong’s worsening local outbreaks, which saw a large number of untraceable cases.
Out of the 82 new cases on Tuesday, 72 were local infections and 23 of them were of unknown origin, said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch.
Thirty-two belonged to dance club cluster, which now has 552 patients.
Chuang also said that at least 60 people tested preliminarily positive as the city’s tally of confirmed cases reached 6,396.
A new small outbreak emerged at a construction site of Lohas Park, a private housing project in Tseung Kwan O, as three workers were confirmed as infected and eight others tested preliminarily positive, according to Chuang. More than 900 workers at the same site need to undergo testing.
Like in previous outbreaks, the virus had also been detected in care homes across the city.
Among the preliminary cases, eight involved patients living at Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Fong Shu Chuen Care & Attention Home in Shau Kei Wan. Two residents and three workers at the center had been confirmed as infected.
Two workers and a resident at Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Ho Yuk Ching Willow Lodge in Tai Kok Tsui were also found to be infected.
On the other hand, Pak Lok Nursing Home in San Po Kong has one resident infected, while around 50 workers and residents had to be quarantined.
Meanwhile, Shenzhen’s health authorities confirmed an imported case from Hong Kong on Tuesday. The patient is a 60-year-old driver of cross-boundary container trucks.
The man developed a cough on Sunday and tested positive for the coronavirus the next day when he crossed into Shenzhen. He had tested negative in five previous tests conducted from Nov 20 to 28. A total of 52 people in Shenzhen were quarantined.
[South Korea] PM says No. of quarantined people tops 70,000 amid rapid virus spread
Dec 02. 2020Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun presides over a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters at the government complex in Seoul on Wednesday. (Yonhap)
By The Korea Herald/ANN
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Wednesday that the number of those quarantined at home in South Korea due to COVID-19 has soared to an all-time high level of over 70,000 and asked the public to cooperate with the government’s antivirus measures.
“Transmissions are continuing in all places, with the number of quarantined people soaring above 70,000 to reach an all-time high level since two days ago,” Chung said during a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters at the government complex in Seoul.
Chung stressed that the upcoming weekend would serve as a critical juncture in determining whether new cases continue to rise or subside.
He asked for the public to adhere more strictly to tightened social distancing rules, explaining that the latest virus wave is difficult to control by government measures alone, as transmissions were reportedly occurring virtually in all places.
“We ask that you cooperate with the thought that all people are the principle agents of the country’s antivirus measures,” Chung said.
The prime minister also wished good luck to those scheduled to take the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) on Thursday and requested education officials do their utmost to ensure the safety of test takers at nationwide venues.
Around 490,000 high school seniors, graduates and others plan to take the CSAT amid a sharp increase in the number of coronavirus infections across the country.
That includes 21 COVID-19 patients and 144 people in self-quarantine, according to Nov. 26 data from the education ministry. Hospital beds have been set up for up to 172 COVID-19 patients and special test centers for up to 3,800 people in self-quarantine. (Yonhap)
Moderna seeking HSA approval for use of its Covid-19 vaccine in Singapore
Dec 02. 2020
By Audrey Tan The Straits Times/ANN
SINGAPORE – American biotechnology company Moderna has asked the authorities in Singapore to approve the use of its Covid-19 vaccine here.
If all goes well, the first batch of vaccines could arrive as early as this month.
Moderna chief executive Stephane Bancel told The Straits Times on Tuesday night (Dec 1) that the company is in talks with the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) in Singapore.
“We’ve started sending to Singapore, all the information that we have, and we’re having a very good dialogue with them,” he said.
“It is of course their decision how long they need to be comfortable with the data, because their (priority) is to ensure safety, but I anticipate that it could be maybe in December, maybe in January.”
Mr Bancel declined to give details on the number of doses that Singapore would receive, citing confidentiality clauses, but said Moderna will be ready to ship its vaccines here “right away” once approval is given.
ST has approached the HSA for comment.
Last month, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said Singapore would work on securing a portfolio of Covid-19 vaccines to cater to different segments of the population instead of relying on just one vaccine.
Moderna on Monday applied for emergency use authorisation of its Covid-19 vaccine in the United States, following the release of the full results from its late-stage clinical trial.
The results of the trial, which involved 30,000 people, had shown that the vaccine was 94.1 per cent effective in preventing Covid-19, and 100 per cent effective at preventing severe disease from the coronavirus.
The filing in the US sets Moderna’s product up as the second vaccine likely to receive US emergency use authorisation this year.
Pfizer and BioNTech – the two firms behind another Covid-19 vaccine front runner – have also applied for emergency use authorisation of their vaccine in the US. Pfizer said final results from the late-stage trial of that Covid-19 vaccine showed it was 95 per cent effective.
Both vaccines protect most people against severe forms of the disease, but the data is not yet clear about whether the vaccines will stop them from spreading Sars-CoV-2 – the virus which causes Covid-19.
Mr Bancel indicated as much on Tuesday.
But he added: “We’re going to get that data, and I anticipate we should know about whether the vaccine prevents, or how well does it prevent infection from one human to another… in the new year.
“So we’re getting close but we don’t have all the data,” he said in an exclusive interview with ST.
He has said that the company was on track to produce 20 million doses by the end of December, and from 500 million to a billion in 2021. Each person has to have two doses of the vaccine, administered a month apart.
Both vaccines by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, leverage a new technology called messenger RNA (mRNA). There are no mRNA vaccines currently available on the market.
But Mr Bancel gave the assurance that people can be confident about its safety.
He said mRNA vaccines have been tested on humans before, citing clinical trials in Germany that took place before the Covid-19 pandemic.
He also noted that no severe adverse events had occurred among volunteers during the late-stage clinical trial for the Covid-19 vaccine.
“If you look at all vaccines, across all technologies, known to regulators, any serious side effects usually happen within six weeks of the jab,” he said.
This is why the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had asked Moderna to submit its application for emergency approval only after eight weeks of safety data being collected.
“We crossed that threshold in the second half of November, which is why we were able to submit (the application),” he explained in a video interview.
The mRNA platform involves injecting snippets of the viral genetic code in the body to stimulate the human immune system to mount a defence against the invading coronavirus.
But mRNA molecule fully degrades in the body within 48 hours, Mr Bancel explained.
“Moreover, the molecule does not enter the nucleus of the human cell, does not touch the human DNA,” he explained.
Asked if Moderna would consider expanding to Singapore, Mr Bancel said that there are no plans to do so yet.
“We have been so busy working on the vaccine that we have had no time to think about expansion,” he said.
But he said that he has been to Singapore 20 times, and is aware that the Republic is a “great biotech hub”, with an educated workforce that has strong work ethics.
Mr Bancel added: “I’m sure we’ll find ways to collaborate more and more with Singapore.”
Asian Sea Corporation, producer and exporter of frozen seafood, has earmarked Bt500 million for acquiring factories manufacturing pet food pellets along with businesses related to distribution in Asean markets. The budget will also be used for investing in international brands.
Akamon Prasoppolsujarit, Asian Sea’s chief financial officer, said the company has also set aside Bt400 million to invest in machines to enhance productivity and capacity in the manufacturing of animal feed and frozen food businesses without needing to hire more personnel.
Varanratch Assanupong, the firm’s finance and investor relations manager, confirmed that Asian Sea’s earnings will hit Bt8.4 billion, higher than Bt8.33 billion last year, because revenue in the first nine months of 2020 alone stood at Bt6.45 billion.
“We expect the fourth-quarter revenue to increase quarter on quarter as a new dog food brand to penetrate the low-income market is expected to help boost the company’s sales in the last quarter,” she said, adding that the sale of canned tuna, frozen food and aquatic feed have also risen.
She added that the company will maintain its gross profit margin at 15 per cent, down from 16.90 per cent in the past nine months due to the appreciation of the baht, while the company’s revenue from exports has risen by 80 per cent.
Automotive, product manufacturer and retail shares are currently benefiting from the government’s measures to stimulate domestic consumption, experts said.
The government had launched various measures to stimulate consumption and compensate for a lack of income from overseas, such as the “Rao Tiew Duay Kan” (We Travel Together) scheme, raising the Bt500 monthly payment for state welfare card holders and introducing the “Khon La Khrueng” (Let’s Go Halves) shopping scheme and “Shop Dee Mee Kuen” (Shop and Payback) scheme.
Asia Plus Securities assistant vice-president Paradorn Tiaranapramot said the government’s “old car for new car” scheme, currently under consideration, would benefit automotive shares, such as AAPICO Hitech Pcl (AH), Somboon Advance Technology Pcl (SAT) and Thai Stanley Electric Pcl (STANLY).
In addition, he said the second phase of the Khon La Khrueng scheme, which the Finance Ministry confirmed would start on January 1, would benefit product manufacturer shares, such as Osotspa Pcl (OSP), Taokaenoi Food & Marketing Pcl (TKN), Sappe Pcl (SAPPE) and Thai Vegetable Oil Pcl (TVO).
Meanwhile, the Shop Dee Mee Kuen scheme and the launch of the iPhone 12 would benefit retail shares, such as MK Restaurant Group Pcl (M), Central Retail Corporation Pcl (CRC), Com7 Pcl (COM7), SPVI Pcl (SPVI) and Berli Jucker Pcl (BJC).
A Yuanta Securities analyst said retail companies’ same store sale growth is expected to increase in the fourth quarter from the stimulus measures.
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The ASEAN Customs Transit System has been launched, and offers an online customs transit management system for Southeast Asia. — Photo Courtesy ASEAN Customs Transit System 
In this undated file photo, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying addresses a press briefing in Beijing. (PHOTO/CHINA DAILY) 
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun presides over a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters at the government complex in Seoul on Wednesday. (Yonhap) 
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