The government has officially announced a national mourning period of 30 days, while government and state-owned-enterprise officials will wear black clothes for a year.
Yesterday a lot of people flocked to markets to buy black or white clothing to take part in the mourning. Some shops reportedly increased the prices of these clothes to between Bt150 and Bt200, up from the normal average of Bt80-Bt100.
Director-general Nuntawan Sakuntanaga said yesterday that during the period of national |sorrow following the death of |His Majesty the King, the department would send official teams to monitor prices of black clothing to prevent unscrupulous traders from overcharging or hoarding.
Anyone conducting such practices could be found in breach of the Price of Goods and Services Act and subject to a Bt140,000 fine and/or a maximum of seven years in jail, she said.
Consumers who believe they have been charged unfair prices can complain to the department’s hotline at 1569.
Nuntawan added that after the department consulted fabric and clothing manufacturers, they confirmed that there would be shortage of black items for only a few days and that they should be able to produce enough to respond to the high demand within a week.
“The supply of black shirts may be low for a few days, but garment manufacturers have insisted that there will not be a shortage, while they will quote prices as normal.”
She said people should not rush to buy black clothing |but should wait until production is ramped up and there are |more good-quality designs to choose from.
To help relieve the costs faced by government officials, the department will coordinate with garment manufacturers on the sale of black clothing at factory cost to the Commerce Ministry in Nonthaburi on Wednesday.
The Commerce Ministry will |go ahead with the Bangkok International Gift Fair and Bangkok International House-ware Fair (BIG & BIH) and the “Creative Thailand” event from October 19-23 at the Bangkok International Trade and Exhibi-tion Centre (Bitec) in Bang Na district. Malee Choklumlerd, director-general of the International Trade Promotion Department, said the fair would be held as scheduled as foreign buyers had already confirmed their participation in the event.
More than 480 companies will set up 13,000 exhibition booths to show off their offerings to both Thai and international buyers. On retail day, sales of more than Bt1.5 billion are expected.

In Asia, medical costs are anticipated to increase by 11.5 per cent against an inflation rate of 2.1 per cent.
Mercer Marsh Benefits is a partnership of global professional services firms Mercer and Marsh.
Its research into company-provided employee healthcare plans found that the costs were largely driven by claims related to employee lifestyle choices, such as smoking, a lack of exercise and a poor diet.
The highest cost increases are expected in Vietnam (19.3 per cent), Malaysia (17.3 per cent) and Indonesia (11.8 per cent).
Circulatory system (59 per cent), cancer (52 per cent), respiratory (46 per cent) and gastrointestinal (46 per cent) diseases were the main cause of claims last year.
Rose Kwan of Mercer Marsh Benefits in Singapore said yesterday that |in Asia, the role of governments in |specific markets has greatly impacted how consumers are experiencing healthcare.
“For example, as our report indicates, with recent legislation coming to Vietnam from the Ministry of Health, the country is bracing for an anticipated 30-per-cent increase in costs for some public hospital services and products,” he said.
One core and fundamental strategy available to employers is to help employees live a healthier life, improve their productivity, reduce absenteeism and increase engagement.
Wellness programmes, education of the impact of lifestyle choices and the redesign of medical insurance plans have all had an important role to play in better controlling long-term medical plan cost trends, he said.
“Medical Trends Around the World” is based on a survey of 171 insurers across 49 countries outside of the United States and shows that, across 40 countries, the average per person increase in healthcare costs is, globally, almost triple the rate of inflation.
Globally, 2015 saw an average 9.9-per-cent increase in medical costs, with 2016 forecast at 9.8 per cent.
Cost increases are being driven by noncommunicable diseases – those that cannot be caught from other people but are frequently caused by the lifestyle choices of individuals.
Average overall price inflation reduced from 3.9 per cent to 3.5 per cent over the same period.
Jacques Goulet, Mercer’s president of retirement, health and benefits, said the results yielded by this year’s survey underscore the importance of the role employers can play globally in controlling healthcare costs. “Stakeholders need to embrace disruption in healthcare.
“The window of opportunity is now for employer-led healthcare transformation – in the United States but also in other geographies where employers have not played a direct traditional role but where having a cost effective and high quality healthcare system is an enabler for business success.”
Graham Pearce, partner at Mercer, said a medical cost inflation rate close to three times that of overall inflation is just not sustainable.
“It is therefore of the utmost importance that employers become much more serious about ‘bending the trend’ with a long-term healthcare strategy.”
The report asked insurers for information on the rising cost of medical care compared to inflation in each market as well as the types, costs and frequency of medical conditions that were claimed for by company employees last year.

The certification goes into effect on November 1.
“After the EU certifies Sung Yod rice, it will add value to the product in the EU and world markets. Thai farmers and traders will enjoy higher income and a good reputation for this speciality rice grain,” Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said yesterday.
This is the fourth Thai product to win GI recognition from the EU. Hom Mali Thung Kula Ronghai jasmine rice was certified three years ago, and Doi Chang and Doi Tung coffee were recognised last year.
The decision was published in the official journal of the European Union on Wednesday.
As of next month, Thai rice exporters will be able to put the GI logo on Sung Yod rice bags for shipment to the EU market.
A Geographical Indication is a name or sign used on certain products that corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin, such as a town, province, region or country.
Such certification may indicate that the product possesses certain qualities, is made according to traditional methods or enjoys a certain reputation due to its geographical origin.
Sung Yod rice is grown only in Phatthalung province near Ban Tad Mountain and Songkhla Lake. It has a distinctive reddish colour and high nutritional value.
Thailand itself granted Sung Yod rice GI certification 10 years ago, on March 14, 2006. Before getting the GI certification, its retail price was Bt50 per kilogram, but after gaining the certification it began retailing for Bt80-Bt90 per kilo.
A total of 7,703 tonnes of Sung Yod rice was produced last year.
Sung Yod rice is exported to many countries including China, Singapore, India and Malaysia. After winning the EU certification, it should be able to find markets in Europe such the Netherlands, France and Italy. Apiradi said that after receiving GI certification from the EU for four products, the Intellectual Property Department would seek similar accreditation for other products.

The committee has revised upwards its economic-growth forecast range for this year from 3-3.5 per cent to 3.3-3.5 per cent, while expecting the economy to expand by between 3.5 per cent and 4 per cent next year.
“The stimulus measures that have been implemented, recovering export growth and more investment by both the government and private sectors, will contribute to better economic expansion this year and next,” said Isara Vongkusolkit, chairman of the Board of Trade of Thailand and the Thai Chamber of Commerce, who chaired yesterday’s meeting of the JSCCIB.
For this year, the joint panel now predicts the country’s export shipments posting a contraction of 2 per cent, representing essentially flat growth.

Exports started to recover in August and should continue to grow, driven mainly by cross-border trading and increasing prices of farm crops.
However, there are still some worrying factors, including China’s economic slowdown and uncertainty over the recovery of the European Union’s economy.
Predee Daochai, chairman of the Thai Bankers’ Association and a member of the JSCCIB, said there were fears in some quarters that Deutsche Bank might not be able to withstand the impact of a US$14-billion (Bt485 billion) settlement to end a mortgage-backed securities mis-selling case in the United States.
However, the case should not affect Thai commercial banks, which have few financial transactions with the German bank, he said.
Predee said he believed the beleaguered bank would be able limit the impact of the settlement by getting more money from shareholders or finding another way to prevent bankruptcy.
On the export front, Isara said the structure of Thai shipments had continued to change in recent years, from relying mainly on domestic manufacturing for exports, to manufacturing in other countries and re-exporting to third markets.
The Kingdom’s export figures would therefore likely continue to shrink, but the country would at the same time gain from investment overseas, not least in neighbouring countries, including China, he added.
Each year, the value of new Thai direct investment in other countries is worth more than Bt10 billion, with major industries having gone down this path including cement, garments, processed foods and beverages, the JSCCIB chairman said.
Meanwhile, Isara insisted that Thailand’s decline to 34th place in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index rankings was not a matter for serious concern, as the country had commenced investment in many major state projects that the forum’s annual survey had not been able to take into account.
Once the pace of government investment in infrastructure development picks up, many large companies will follow suit, while stalled investment by small and medium-sized businesses will then also be stimulated, he explained.

Analog-based free-to-air TV stations including Channel 3, TV5, Channel 7, Modernine TV, NBT and Thai Public Broadcasting Service (Thai PBS) lost some of their audience base to new players in the digital terrestrial TV business.
As of last month, the audience share of analog TV stations slid below 50 per cent, from more than half in June. Meanwhile, the audience share of the 19 new digital TV channels rose to more than half of total households.
Those figures were based on nationwide TV ratings among viewers over 15 years of age.
This marked a significant development in the TV industry after digital broadcasting was introduced in the country three years ago.
Nielsen said Channel 7, which is run by Bangkok Broadcasting and Television, remained the largest player in terms of audience share with 26.51 per cent, followed by Channel 3 operated by Bangkok Entertainment Co with 19.03 per cent.
Workpoint TV, which is under the new terrestrial-based digital system, was ranked No 3 with a 10.38-per-cent share, followed by Mono 29 with 7.99 per cent, One31 with 6.45 per cent and Channel 8 with 6.08 per cent.
This reflected intense competition in the Bt80-billion TV broadcasting industry while some major advertisers were allocating their budgets to new outlets such as social and online media.
In this tough situation, in the first eight months, Channel 3’s ratings fell by 23 per cent from the same period last year, while Channel 7 dropped by 9 per cent.
In the meantime, some of the new digital channels were enjoying healthy growth. For example, the ratings of One31, run by music and entertainment giant GMM Grammy, soared by almost 100 per cent, while Mono 29 enjoyed 39-per-cent growth and Workpoint TV 25 per cent.
However, digital Channel 8, operated by entertainment company RS, saw its rating go up by just 1 per cent in the first eight months. RS chief operating officer Pornpan Techarungchaikul said yesterday that her strategy for the remaining months would be to put more emphasis on news programmes.
Under this strategy, more news personalities will be invited to join the Channel 8 team to expand its economic news, hot entertainment news, general news and its already strong sports news throughout the day.
“Khao Den Thiang” will run daily from noon to 1pm, “Khui Khao Yen” on weekdays from 4.30pm-6pm and weekends from 5pm-6pm, and “Khao Den Rob Wan” on Monday to Thursday from 9.09pm-9.45pm and on Fridays from 10.45pm-11.15pm.
A new variety programme has been introduced, “Sadud Khao Ded”, which is a light-hearted show covering local and international politics, sports, and regional news.