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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404055

Baht ‘likely to weaken further’

NationalMar 24. 2021

By THE NATION

The baht opened at 31 to the US dollar on Wednesday, weakening from a close of 30.95 on Tuesday.

The Thai currency is likely to move between 30.95 and 31.10, Krungthai Bank market strategist Poon Panichpibool said.

He expected the Monetary Policy Committee to freeze the interest rate at 0.50 per cent as a result of Wednesday’s meeting.

Poon said the Bank of Thailand (BOT) would aim to ensure liquidity in the financial system for sections that are in need of it via measures such as soft loans or asset warehousing.

He also said the baht would continue to fluctuate in line with the dollar, while the Thai currency would likely weaken on Wednesday.

Poon said the BOT would sell the dollar to reduce its foreign reserves and in turn delay the baht’s weakening.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404044

Upper Thailand gets warmer, thundershowers in the South

NationalMar 24. 2021

By THE NATION

The high-pressure system over upper Thailand is weakening and leading to increasing temperatures in the region as southerly and southeasterly winds cover the North, bringing hot weather along with isolated thundershowers, the Meteorological Department said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a moderate easterly wind across the South and the Gulf of Thailand will lead to thundershowers and isolated heavy rains over the lower South, it forecast, advising all ships to proceed with caution as waves in the Gulf are 1-2 metres high and will be above 2 metres during thundershowers.

Here’s the weather forecast for the next 24 hours:

Bangkok and surrounding areas: Partly cloudy; temperature lows of 24-26 degrees, highs of 34-36 degrees Celsius.

North: Hot day with thundershowers in 10 per cent of the area; temperature lows of 23-26 degrees and highs of 33-38 degrees Celsius.

Northeast: Partly cloudy; temperature lows of 18-22 degrees and highs of 31-35 degrees Celsius.

Central: Partly cloudy; temperature lows of 23-25 degrees, highs of 33-36 degrees Celsius.

East: Partly cloudy; temperature lows of 23-26 degrees, highs of 33-36 degrees Celsius; waves a metre high and 1-2 metres offshore.

South (east coast): Thundershowers in 60 per cent of the area; temperature lows of 23-27 degrees, highs of 31-34 degrees Celsius; waves 1-2 metres high and over 2 metres during thundershowers.

South (west coast): Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 30 per cent of the area; temperature lows of 23-26 degrees, highs of 34-36 degrees Celsius; waves a metre high and 1-2 metres during thundershowers.

Source: Thailand Meteorological Department

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404042

Plane tickets cheaper than Bangkok bus fare in new TAT promotion

NationalMar 24. 2021

By The Nation

Travellers, it’s time to check your pockets for change. On Tuesday, six Thai airlines launched special promotions with tickets for domestic routes starting from Bt8.

Organised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the “Thai Travel Fleet is Even More Amazing” campaign aims to lure back passengers with low fares and Covid-safe transport.

The special fares are being offered by Nok Air, Thai AirAsia, Thai Lion Air, Thai Smile, Thai Vietjet, and Bangkok Airways.

Nok Air

30 per cent discounts plus Nok CareKits consisting of disposable seat covers, alcohol pads, and face masks on every seat.

Thai Airways

30 per cent discounts on domestic flight bookings from March 22-28 for travel from March 29-September 30.

Thai Lion Air

Weekday tickets from Bt99 (excluding airport tax) for bookings from April 1-30 to travel on April 1-September 30 (Monday-Thursday, excluding public holidays). Discount vouchers via Klook.

Thai Smile Airways

Fares on all domestic routes start at Bt8 with full service. Promotion available for one day only on March 26 (Friday) for travel from April 1-October 30.

Thai Vietjet

Fares start at Bt99, or Bt480 including taxes and fees, for bookings from March 23-December 31 to travel from March 24-December 31.

Bangkok Airways

50 per cent discount on round-trip fares if you apply for the FlyerBonus points reward programme and register via bangkokair.com/halfprice from 8am on March 24 to 8pm on March 26.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404039

Immigration Bureau sets up field hospital to tend to quarantined migrants

NationalMar 23. 2021(File Photo) Samut Sakhon field hospital in shrimp central market, one of model for a new field hospital which will be established in Bang Khen, Bangkok.

By The Nation

The Immigration Bureau will set up a temporary field hospital to accommodate the 1,615 migrants being quarantined.

Of the migrants, 490 are at the Bang Khen Immigration quarantine centre, while the rest are at the Suan Phlu Immigration Office.

Apart from the 370 men and 23 women testing positive in the Bang Khen immigration office, one police officer also picked up the virus and is undergoing treatment at the Police Hospital.

Immigration commissioner Sompong Chingduan said the 393 patients from Bang Khen quarantine centre will be moved to the field hospital set up at the Royal Thai Police Sport Club on Wednesday.

The relocation of patients will be overseen by the Department of Disease Control (DDC), while a medical team from Samut Sakhon Hospital will be at hand to tend to the patients.

DDC director Dr Sophon Iamsirithaworn said the patients will be separated into three groups – the newly infected, those infected for a while and those who have been infected before.

Most of the patients are of working age and have mild symptoms. He said it will take up to four weeks to have the situation under control before patients will be assessed again.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404035

Thailand serves spicy recipe for Unesco Cultural Heritage 2021 list

NationalMar 23. 2021

By The Nation

Tom Yam Kung will compete for a place on the Unesco world cultural heritage menu after the Cabinet decided to serve up the spicy soup as Thailand’s candidate this year.

The shrimp soup – flavoured with galangal, lemongrass, chilli, lime leaves, fish sauce and sugar – was proposed for recognition by the Culture Ministry at Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting.

Tom Yam Kung will now compete to join Khon and traditional Thai massage as Unesco Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Khon dance form based on the Ramakien epic was included as world heritage in 2018 while Thai massage made the list in 2019. Unesco is currently considering Nora, the traditional southern dance form, and the Songkran water festival for inclusion as intangible heritage of humanity.

Culture Minister Itthiphol Kunplome explained Tom Yam Kung was a national dish famous around the globe, but it also reflected the simple lifestyle of agricultural communities living along central Thailand’s richly fertile rivers and canals.

Proposing Tom Yam Kung as global heritage will be a proud moment for Thais while also boosting awareness among foreigners of the abundant variety of Thai food, he added.

It will also create opportunities for the Thai food business, creating jobs and income for producers including shrimp farmers and herb growers, as well as exporters and Thai restaurant operators both here and abroad, Itthiphol said.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404032

Animal group launches call to save seized furballs from auction block

NationalMar 23. 2021

By The Nation

The Thai Animal Guardians Association on Monday called on animal lovers to write to the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) chief to suspend the auctioning of the six cats seized from a drug-trafficking suspect.

This is after the association’s founder Roger Lohanan failed to negotiate the cats’ release with Pornthip Chaempong, director of Narcotics Control Office Region 2. Also present at the discussion was Chollada Mekratri, founder of the Voice Foundation.

Pornthip said the cats are being looked after by the suspect’s relatives and cannot be transferred without court approval because they are among assets confiscated in a drug-related case.

“The ONCB has given the relatives 15 days to provide information about the origin of the six cats and they will be able to take them over permanently if officials find that the cats were not acquired under criminal dealings,” Pornthip said.

She said that if the relatives fail to provide information about the cats, then their auction date and price will be set at the end of April.

“ONCB wants to sell them as one lot, so they are not separated,” she added.

On March 15, police raided a house in Rayong’s Klaeng district and arrested the occupant Tathep Arun on suspicion of being part of a drug network run by Soradet “Kook Rayong” Sonsiri.

Police confiscated all assets, including the six cats, which will be checked by the Department of Livestock Development before being auctioned off.

Related story:

Animal lovers work on removing furballs from auction block

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404029

KPMG offers outsourcing solutions to companies in Thailand

NationalMar 23. 2021Charoen Phosamritlert (right) and Abhisit Pinmaneekul (left)

By The Nation (sponsored news)

Balancing books and managing taxes can become a challenge and even expensive for some companies, especially when it comes to recruiting and retaining qualified staff.

However, an alternative, long-term solution is at hand, with leading professional services provider, KPMG, offering end-to-end accounting and tax outsourcing services.

KPMG Thailand is offering these services to meet growing demand, especially from clients that are setting up a business in Thailand.

Services include company registration, tax registration, VAT, withholding, corporate income tax and personal income tax compliance, payroll, bookkeeping, accounting advice, statutory financial statements, coordination and liaison with auditors among others.

“Outsourcing brings many advantages to businesses,” said Charoen Phosamritlert, chief executive officer for KPMG in Thailand, Myanmar and Laos.

“It presents a much-coveted possibility for companies to focus on the core of their business as they will not need to worry about hiring full-time staff and complications that come with the need for upskilling, welfare, training and other staff benefits. They also have access to subject matter with highly skilled experts. It is a much more cost-effective solution.

“With a global network of member firms, comprehensive services, professionals with extensive experience, we are confident in providing the best service to local and multinational experts. As we see more companies turn towards outsourcing, we believe we are the clear choice as an outsourcing partner, able to assist clients in adding value through accounting and tax data and analytics, reducing time, operating costs and risk through managing accounting and tax functions,” said Abhisit Pinmaneekul, chief of the tax department at KPMG Thailand.

Visit KPMG’s website for more information.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404028

Tourists flock to Rayong beach to revive their mood with cannabis drink

NationalMar 23. 2021

By THE NATION

Rayong’s Laem Charoen Beach was bustling with tourists again after the government lifted controls recently.

Another reason for the crowds was the innovative cannabis-laced beverage being sold by vendors.

Thailand recently removed cannabis from its list of banned narcotics.

Saipan Keerana, the owner of Kreung Deum Arom Dee (Drinks for Good Mood) café, said: “I opened this café to earn extra income and offer a variety of beverages, such as fruit juice, tea and coffee.

“Now that the government has legalised some parts of the cannabis plant, I started using boiled cannabis leaves to make a refreshing beverage and it has become a big hit,” she added.

“These cannabis drinks come in many flavours, and we add a leaf or two of cannabis, so the consumer can experience the real taste of cannabis.”

The government now allows the use of some parts of cannabis and hemp plants as food ingredients, including bark, stem, stalk, fibre, root, leaves and extract that contains no more than 0.2 per cent cannabidiol and tetrahydrocannabinol.

This move aims to turn cannabis and hemp into cash crops.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404027

Chiang Mai Uni execs slammed for removing ‘trash’ from art expo

NationalMar 23. 2021

By THE NATION

A video clip showing a Chiang Mai University art professor attacking university executives for removing students’ installation art recently went viral.

On Monday, a group of yellow-attired people entered the exhibition and began moving some pieces on display to a parked pick-up truck that belonged to the faculty of fine arts.

The installations appeared to be depicting the aftermath of protests.

The executives also ignored students and other officials at the scene who tried to stop them until art professor Thasnai Sethaseree appeared at the scene.

Thasnai immediately began asking the execs to explain themselves, and when they couldn’t, he began attacking them for not appreciating art. The incident was live-streamed on Facebook and went viral.

Some of Thasnai’s statements were widely shared, such as:

“Are you art professors? Do you respect art? Do you respect other humans? Art is not anybody’s master or slave.

“Don’t do this again. This is enough. It is shameful that people like you do not respect freedom.

“A teacher’s duty is to love their students, protect them and their expression of art. We all have strong ambitions but must control ourselves, otherwise, we will be like dogs.”

Eventually, the execs agreed to bring back the pieces they had removed, claiming they thought they were clearing trash. Observers, however, believe this so-called removal was politically motivated and a move to gag the youth-led anti-establishment movement.

“Can art be trash? Does art need to be tidy like bankers’ uniforms?” the professor asked.

Meanwhile, some students filed a police complaint accusing the faculty of robbery after some of their pieces were damaged. The university management has also called on the executives to explain themselves.

On Tuesday, Thasnai wrote on Facebook that many people wanted to befriend him online, but said he wanted time to screen them first.

He also said that he would stand by and support young people who have been intimidated, charged and imprisoned for standing up against the establishment.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30404026

Air quality at unsafe levels in Bangkok and five provinces

NationalMar 23. 2021

By The Nation

Air pollution in Bangkok, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Chiang Rai, Mae Hong Son and Tak provinces hit unsafe levels on Tuesday morning, the Centre for Air Pollution Mitigation reported.

Thailand’s standard for safe levels of PM2.5 (particles less than 2.5 micrometres in diameter) is 50 micrograms per cubic metre (μg/m3), while the World Health Organisation sets it at 25 μg/m3.

PM2.5 readings as of Tuesday morning:

North: 16 to 127 μg/m3.

Northeast: 9 to 21 μg/m3.

Central region and West: 13 to 33 μg/m3.

East: 19 to 37 μg/m3.

South: 11 to 22 μg/m3.

Bangkok and its vicinity: 31 to 63 μg/m3.

The Bangkok Air Quality and Noise Management Division said air quality was unsafe in 36 Bangkok districts, with Khlong San district having the worst PM2.5 reading at 63 μg/m3.

The PM2.5 situation can be followed on Air4Thai.com and bangkokairquality.com websites, or via Air4Thai and AirBKK smartphone applications.