“With Kubota’s exclusive technology ‘K-Tech’, the new diesel engine is more powerful, durable, and fuel-efficient, capable of heavy duty use, allowing for long-haul transportation and full-capacity water pumping,” the statement said.

Somsak Mauthorn, senior executive vice president of Siam Kubota, said the innovation and new technologies in agricultural machinery have become a key factor that will help farmers achieve maximum efficiency and convenience.

The company has recently launched the Kubota ZT Series diesel engine, a new model that is stronger, more durable and more fuel-efficient, with a sleeker and more ergonomic design.

“For our new Kubota ZT diesel engine, we have improved the design, giving it a more sleek and modern appearance with a curved cover. We have also installed LED front lights and indicator lights, making it safer for use during nighttime,” Somsak said.

“In addition, to cater to modern lifestyle and enhance convenience, we have installed USB ports for electronic devices and a new fuel gauge that allows users to check fuel levels without having to open the cover lid.

“In terms of performance, our primary focus is on achieving maximum efficiency and durability for heavy-duty use, by solving issues of overheating, and using multi-hole nozzle direct injection engine for better and faster atomisation in the combustion chambers, thus increasing combustion efficiency and reducing fuel consumption.”

TrueMove H said in a statement that it is offering its customers total rewards  worth 2,104,600 Baht, comprising 12 gold-bar prizes, worth Bt2 million, and 282 TrueMoney top-up cards, worth Bt300-500.

Customers can apply via SMS from today until May 31. More details are available at https://www.facebook.com/TrueMoveH/

Thai Agro Exchange runs Talaad Thai, billed as Southeast Asia’s largest “total agricultural market”. Its three-year contract with ThaiNamthip has expired, but been extended another five years, allowing the latter to remain the sole retailer of Coca-Cola beverages at the market.

They include Namthip low- to no-sugar sparkling and non-sparkling beverages.

In addition, ThaiNamthip will invest more than Bt33 million to support businesses at Talaad Thai through training and promotional activities.

“As business and industry sectors become more competitive these days, ThaiNamthip focuses on developing technology and innovation to meet Coca-Cola’s world-class standard as well as improving our employees to be continuously responsive to the business partner and consumer needs,” Chazarreta said.

“We concentrate on developing not only ThaiNamthip’s people but also our partners’ staff to enhance their business performance. We are delighted to work together with Thai Agro Exchange for another five years.”

Thai Agro Exchange chief executive Graham Charles Sander said its partnerships contributed to a 30-per-cent increase in sales at Talaad Thai shops over the past three years.

“Talaad Thai believes another five-year partnership, along with ThaiNamthip’s innovations and our potential as Southeast Asia’s largest total agricultural market, with trade value of Bt180 billion per year, will enhance the wholesale standard and prepare for Talaad Thai’s renovation in the near future.”

ThaiNamthip will continue distributing the full Coca-Cola portfolio – Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Schweppes, A&W Root Beer, Coke No Sugar, Namthip Drinking Water, Aquarius, Minute Maid Pulpy and Fuze Tea.

It will help Talaad Thai shopkeepers with training in business, product display and decoration, and promotional and marketing activities.

The event was designed to equip Thai operators of small and medium-sized enterprises with in-depth knowledge and insights into the British market.

“As a leading retailer in Thailand with more than 1,900 stores, Tesco Lotus has been supporting Thai SMEs by providing distribution channels with a nationwide reach,” said Tesco chief executive John Christie, who co-chairs the Leadership Council.

“In addition, we have also helped develop business capabilities of Thai SMEs to ensure that their products comply with internationally accepted standards and are fit for export. For the past 10 years, Tesco Lotus has helped Thai SMEs to export their products throughout the Tesco network.”

Tesco Lotus has helped export Thai fruit, chicken, shrimp meat, groceries, animal food, stationery and toys to Britain, Central Europe and elsewhere in Asia through the Tesco network, which spans 10 countries.

The support provided has helped contribute to the growth of the export sector in Thailand, as well as uplift the quality standards for small and medium sized businesses, as well as farmers.

Around 60 SMEs were selected to learn from Tesco Lotus about the retail business and consumer trends in the United Kingdom, and get financial and funding advice from Bangkok Bank.

The phone’s 4,100mAh battery will last two days even amid heavy use of the five-megapixel front camera.

The sleek frame is precision-machined from a single block of aluminium and carries a five-inch display.

The 8MP rear camera features automatic scene detection and auto focus, ensuring fantastic shots every time.

The Android Oreo operating system can be set for monthly security updates.

Sold in pewter/black or pewter/white, the Nokia 2 costs Bt3,490.

Basis International School Bangkok will open in September 2019 in the Rama 2 area. The opening follows 20 successful years for the popular US network of schools, which says it “consistently produces students of the highest calibre who regularly appear at the top of US and international academic performance rankings”.

The organisation said that the new Bangkok school was conceived after studies showed a growing demand in Thailand for a more ambitious education system following huge demand for places at the Basis International Schools in Shenzhen, China, which was established in 2015, and Guangzhou, China, which opened in 2017.

“In today’s digitised global world, the need for professional, multilingual international teachers with a real interest in children’s futures and an ability to help structure them is regarded as increasingly important,” said Carolyn McGarvey, CEO of Basis International “That’s the goal of Basis International School Bangkok: putting children in a place that provides them with the best opportunities for what lies ahead.”

The Basis curriculum operates from preschool to 12th grade. Initially, the Bangkok school will serve students up to 5th grade, adding a minimum of one extra grade a year.

In a statement issued Friday, the association said what they see as “unfair trade” may undermine foreign business confidence in Thailand.

The Excise Department’s new regulation is similar to the reported suggestion from the Thai Tobacco Monopoly, the association said.

Any new regulation requiring that the tax base for cigarettes be the suggested retail price prevailing upon the date the new law entered into effect (September 16, 2017) would be an unnecessary market interference, contradicting the principles of good governance and a free market, said Stefan Teuchert, president of the EABC.

The European Union, one of the world’s leaders in tobacco control policy and where cigarettes are subject to a mixed system of excise taxation, the taxation system allows “freely formed prices” where retail prices of tobacco products are freely set by business.

Teuchert pointed to the principle of national treatment enshrined in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), under which internal taxes or regulations shall not be applied to afford protection to the domestic production.

“We believe that the Thai Government has always abided by this commitment in designing and implementing an excise tax structure and related rules for any excisable goods to promote a level playing field in doing business in Thailand,” said Teuchert.

The change to the Facebook news feed comes as the online giant seeks to address charges that it has failed — along with Google and Twitter — to prevent the spread of bogus news, most strikingly ahead of the 2016 US election.

In a Facebook post, co-founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the network would seek to “prioritize news that is trustworthy, informative, and local.”

“There’s too much sensationalism, misinformation and polarization in the world today,” Zuckerberg said. “Social media enables people to spread information faster than ever before, and if we don’t specifically tackle these problems, then we end up amplifying them.”

The new “trusted sources” ranking, which starts next week, would aim to “make sure the news you see, while less overall, is high quality” and “helps build a sense of common ground” rather than sow division, Zuckerberg said.

To do so, he said, Facebook decided to rely on member surveys as the most “objective” way to rank trust in news sources.

“We could try to make that decision ourselves, but that’s not something we’re comfortable with,” Zuckerberg said. “We considered asking outside experts, which would take the decision out of our hands but would likely not solve the objectivity problem.”

The new ranking system, he said, would hopefully separate news organizations that are only trusted by their readers or watchers, from ones that are broadly trusted across society.

“This update will not change the amount of news you see on Facebook,” he said. “It will only shift the balance of news you see towards sources that are determined to be trusted by the community.”

The latest move comes a week after Facebook announced a major update to its user feed that highlights what friends and family share on the network, over advertisements, celebrity and media posts.

The company cast the change as part of a refocus on “community” — prioritizing social interactions and relationships — while acknowledging it would likely result in people spending less time on the platform.

The firm will also partner with telecom operator to provide executive smartphone models and will joint with partners to set up over 190 shops in Bangkok and upcountry, as well as launch three smartphones to support entry level market.

John Chen, regional sales director of Xiaomi for Southeast Asia, said that the firm sees Thailand as having high potential growth after it entered the Thai market in August last year.

The firm therefore will set up the representative office in the country in the first quarter this year. The firm set up a representative office in India three years ago and set up a representative office in Indonesia last year.

“Thailand is our focus country in the region. It is high potential growth market among four countries including the Philippines, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos. We also have high potential growth in online and e-commerce. Online is also our important part to drive out smartphone to the market. We want to build Thailand is example country in the region,” said Chen.

He said that the firm this year  increased channel distribution and that it will work with partners to set up 190 shops in Bangkok and major provinces such as in Chiang Mai and Udon Thani. Under the new 190 shops, it will work with partners to set up around 75 prefer shops, 25 authorized shops, 30 TG Shops and 60 Jay Mart shops. It also provides its smartphone via three online marketplaces including Lazada,11Street and Shopee.

The firm in the first quarter this year will come out three new smartphone models under the Redmi 5 series from Bt3,000 to Bt7,000, including Redmi 5A smartphone priced at Bt3,000, the Redmi 5 at Bt5,000 and the Redmi 5 Plus at Bt7,000.

The Redmi 5A is a 5-inch smart phone with features, a Snapdragon 425 chipset, 5MP front camera and a 32 GB storage.

Meanwhile, the Redmi 5 is a smartphone coming with a 5.7-inch display screen, a 32 GB memory, a Snapdragon 450 chipset. Lastly, the Redmi 5 Plus offers a Snapdragon 625 chipset with 5.99-inch display screen, a 64 GB storage and a 12 MP primary camera.

The firm  will come out with a notebook, home accessories and home automation in Thailand this year.

“We want to provide luxury smartphones with affordable prices to support all people. We are under negotiations with telecom operator to provide executive smart models to the market, which is one of our goals for the year,” said Chen.

 The proposal had been reported to the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) on November 13.

“This merger plan is believed to help elevate SAGI from its current No 19 market position to No 12, securing its long-term development with an expanded customer base and scale while strongly positioning it to benefit from future P&C market growth, which grew at a CAGR of 9 per cent between 2007 and 2016,” Sri Ayudhya Capital said

“In addition, it will bring about a significant value creation potential and reduced risks, presenting clear operational efficiencies, more diversified portfolio and reduced capital intensity; translates into potentially higher shareholder returns. And the most importantly, the improved management and capabilities will certainly enhance its competitiveness to be able to compete strongly in Thailand through leveraging Allianz’s insurance expertise and digital capabilities.”

Veraphan Teepsuwan, chairman of Sri Ayudhya Capital Public Company Limited, said that AYUD has established a strong partnership with Allianz Group for more than 15 years.

“Throughout many years of success, we have been convinced that Allianz Group is committed to developing and strongly growing its business in Thailand,” Veraphan said. “In addition, the group has successfully implemented effective strategies to increase value to its shareholders. This is clear from the investment value of AYUD in Allianz Ayudhya Assurance in the past. AYUD’s 14.35 per cent stake investment in AZAY in 2012 has increased in value by 274 per cent.

“Therefore, we are very confident that this transaction and the additional investment in Allianz Ayudhya Assurance will create significant business benefits and add value to our shareholders.”

Virojn Srethapramotaya, director of Sri Ayudhya Capital Public Company Limited, said: “The combination of Sri Ayudhya General Insurance Public Company Limited and Allianz General Insurance will result in an operation with expanded scale and competitiveness. This will combine Sri Ayudhya General Insurance’s core strengths with Allianz General Insurance’s insurance expertise.

“We expect this transaction to significantly strengthen our capabilities and expand the products and services we can deliver to our customers. In addition, this transaction will also leverage Allianz’s Group capabilities in digital and data science to drive innovation and closer relationships with our customers. In terms of business size, the combined business will have a far broader customer base with increased competitiveness, putting us in a leading position to achieve stronger growth in Thailand’s insurance market.”