Despite declining sales, Bangkok is still the top market for second-hand houses
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2022
Bangkok remained the largest market in Thailand for second-hand houses in the third quarter, with sales revenue exceeding 600 billion baht, or 62.9% of national total, despite a decline in the number of units sold from the second quarter, according to the Government Housing Bank’s Real Estate Information Centre.
The centre said on Saturday that 59,181 second-hand houses – detached and townhouse units – were sold in Bangkok during the third quarter, down from 63,363 units in the preceding three months. Total sales value was 605.58 billion baht, down from 620.19 billion baht in the second quarter, the centre said.
As a result, the capital remains the largest market for second-hand houses in Thailand. It accounts for 36.6% of national sales by units sold and 62.9% of sales revenue
Nonthaburi was the second-largest market in the third quarter, with 11,255 units sold, followed by Samut Prakan (10,411), Pathum Thani (9,905), Chonburi (8,431), Chiang Mai (4,880), and Phuket (3,352).
The centre said the three major markets that saw the biggest declines in the sales revenue of houses sold in the third quarter were Phuket, down 14.1% from the second quarter, Chiang Mai, down 9.7% from the second quarter, and Chonburi, down 7.2% from the second quarter.
Nationwide, the centre said sales of second-hand houses fell 8.7% in the third quarter from the second quarter. It said downward momentum would continue in the final quarter of this year. The centre bases its numbers on data aggregated from banks, asset management companies and online real-estate portals.
The global labour market is badly suffering the effects of Covid disruption, causing an abrupt change in people’s lifestyles and work environments.
Now more employees are opting for hybrid work environments, forcing companies to implement major changes with a focus on their staff’s mental well-being and goodwill.
Under the expert family of brands – Manpower, Experis®, and Talent Solutions – ManpowerGroup has always believed “People are our organization’s most valuable assets”. Consequently, providing optimal quality of life, training and re-skilling, and more importantly, offering sustainability in work-life happiness and balance and understanding of the three generations – Gen X,Gen Y and Gen Z – across the workforce who bring a novel way of thinking and values but at the same time expect stability and flexibility – are all crucial in the workplace.
According to Lilly Ngamtrakulpanit, Country Manager, ManpowerGroup Thailand, “Based on ManpowerGroup’s recent survey with regard to the labour market, results indicated that employee turnover rates have shot up significantly and at the same time skilled labour in IT and technology is in higher demand than previously.
With the rise in demand for hybrid working, employers and organizations need to rethink and reimagine their normal business practices and rules and provide, first and foremost, work-life balance and flexibility in their employees’ working lives in addition to providing skills or re-skilling – analytical skills in particular – to successfully cope in today’s digital era.
The focus is on understanding and ensuring the three generations of employees work together in harmony and the best talents retained and provided with an optimal work-life balance and flexibility.”
Generation X (Gen-X), born 1965-1980, primarily represents seniors who have worked hard and experienced significant events such as “Tom Yam Kung” and “Hamburger” financial crisis in their lives as well as having witnessed their parent’s dedication to working, tend to place importance on work-life balance.
However, they are still loyal, driven and efficient, are open to new ideas and work well as a team.
Generation Y (Gen-Y or millennials), born 1981-1995, are predominantly occupying the middle management levels at the workplace. This generation upholds clarity and authenticity, shares and dares to state their honest opinions. They don’t hesitate to ask for their rights as an employee. They are team players who are prepared to face any challenges upfront.
Employers and organizations thus need to constantly keep this generation of talents alert with innovations to prevent them from finding work monotonous, and opting for employment elsewhere.
Generation Z (Gen-Z), born 1996-2010 in the digital age, are creative multi-taskers and savvy with current technologies and are result-oriented and strong in quickly filtering relevant information. With their creative attitude, they expect freedom to do things their way and always with an eye to innovation.
Therefore, in order to retain talents in this generation who prefer to opt for other than the traditional 9 to 5 work day, employers need to understand their nature and provide healthy challenges and entertainment in the work environment.
In the past three months, the pandemic has drastically changed working methods whether working from home 100% or alternating between working from home or going to the office or working in the office 100%, ManpowerGroup, as a global leader in providing innovative workforce solutions, had foreseen the importance of the latest hybrid working option in the digital age and amidst Covid disruption resulting in a win-win outcome in terms of investment in talents and additional employee benefits positively affecting their well-being and lifestyles as a whole – a perfect work-life balance.
“I believe organizations in both Thailand and overseas are in unanimous agreement that an important outcome of the Covid-19 pandemic is the opportunity to reshape and maintain work-life balance for each and every one of us,” said Lilly.
“Employers are experiencing the benefits of a truly balanced, beneficial and efficient work-life routine where there are days for on-site meetings for brainstorming and setting goals as a team and also days when we have time to clear pending assignments which we may not otherwise be able to find the time to concentrate on producing new, creative works or reflect upon self-improvements without disruption in an office full of employees, and the luxury of not having to waste time in the traffic and spend more quality time with the family. Employees can produce efficient work off-site as well if not better than working on-site. The flexibility in the work schedule affords the employee to better manage his or her lifestyle, neither necessary to face traffic jams nor to clock in. Everyone’s enhanced mental state of being will definitely be beneficial to work input.”
The latest “hybrid working” option that many organizations including ManpowerGroup Thailand are offering has received positive feedback from employers in general which is in line with ManpowerGroup’s culture and tradition of focusing on results. Flexibility in working on-site or working from anywhere which depends on the pandemic situation is gauged on a monthly basis.
“ManpowerGroup Thailand has recently introduced the new “Four-day” “Work from Anywhere” policy to our staff. I believe we are the first country among the countries of regional ManpowerGroup to introduce such a policy, as we always believe that providing benefits and flexibility to the employees is crucial. If we look after them well, everyone will be happy which in turn will raise efficiency. Working from anywhere is equivalent to additional employee benefits and offers them a chance for work-life balance as well as better employee relationships and a degree of flexibility. We believe our “People are our organization’s most valuable assets”, hence providing work-life balance and skills or re-skilling to our employees are of utmost importance,” added Lilly.
Thai luxury brand fashions success from gender diverse designs
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022
Luxury brand Amass Me launched a new branch at The Emporium mall in Bangkok on Wednesday, aiming to bring inspiration to both women and LGBTQ+ fashionistas.
The brand’s Valleyouth label offers a range of gender-diverse designs to encourage customers to express themselves with confidence, explained Yurudee Thanakittiphum, Amass Me’s managing director.
“Never go out of style/Never run out of inspiration” is the theme for its exclusive range of clothing from Valleyouth and other local designers, she added.
Brands available at Amass Me stores include its own Amass Me range, AEL Studio (Amy Enjoy life), Xunruo, Jungle Me, Camoooni, Goudirnqc, La’ Festin, Tomato&Potato, Tsmlxlt, Empty Reference, Valleyouth, and Kapalikko. Yurude said the company is the country’s only authorised distributor of these brands.
We have no multi-luxury-brand fashion store in Thailand. So Amass Me wants to offer a wardrobe of fashions with a variety of styles, rather than be a general fashion store.”
Amass Me currently has nine Bangkok boutiques at The Crystal SB Ratchapruek, The Crystal Ekamai-Ramindra, CentralWorld, Central Chidlom, Central Ladprao, Central Festival Eastville, The Promenade, Terminal 21 Rama 3 and The Emporium.
TPI Group sweeps citations in ASIA’S GREATEST BRANDS & LEADERS 2022-2023
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2022
Photo: Mr. Pakorn Leophairatana, President of TPI Polene Power Pcl and Mrs. Surapha Nakwatchara, Assistant Vice President Sales of TPI Polene Pcl, received the awards in the occasion of India-Thailand Partners in Progress 2022 Summit on December 17, 2022 held at the India-Thai Chamber of Commerce in Bangkok.
Khun Prachai Leophairatana, Chief Executive Officer of TPI Polene Public Company Limited was awarded ASIA’S GREATEST CEO 2022-2023 by AsiaOne Magazine as he leads the Group in its rebranding of TPI to Technology, Products and Innovation while keeping its commitment to developing Bio-Circular-Green economy (BCG) strategy targeting to achieve net zero GHG by 2026.
On the same occasion, TPI Polene and its subsidiary TPI Polene Power Public Company Limited that operates renewable power plants fueled by municipal solid waste (MSW) both received awards as ASIA’S GREATEST BRANDS 2022-2023. The winners of ASIA’S GREATEST BRANDS & LEADERS are chosen by consumers and industry under the supervision and management of United Research Services of URS Media Consulting International.
‘Avatar 2’ becomes fastest 2022 release to reach $1 billion global box office sales
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2022
James Cameron’s long-awaited “Avatar” sequel has become the fastest 2022 film to smash $1 billion in global sales at the box office in just 14 days since its release in mid-December, according to the entertainment industry website Variety.com.
“Avatar: The Way of Water” has beaten both “Top Gun: Maverick” which took 31 days in May to clear the box office milestone, and “Jurassic World Dominion” released in June which took over four months, according to Variety.
In 2021, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” took just 12 days. Only six movies in history have cleared $1 billion mark in their first two weeks of release.
Studios split ticket sales with theatres, and Cameron has said “The Way of Water” will need to make $2 billion just to break even. Disney has not disclosed the budget and marketing costs.
“The Way of Water” fell short of ticket sales forecasts as it first swept into theatres over the weekend of December 16, racking up roughly $435 million around the globe, distributor Walt Disney Co. said, including $134 million in the United States and Canada.
Pre-weekend predictions called for at least a $140 million domestic tally for Cameron’s decade-in-the-making return to the story of the blue, Na’vi people on a moon called Pandora, and as much as $500 million worldwide.
Box office experts said it was too soon to judge whether the movie would recoup its massive costs.
The movie was released 13 years after the first instalment wowed audiences with pioneering 3D technology. The original “Avatar” remains the all-time box office champion with $2.9 billion in global ticket sales.
The sequel was delayed multiple times as Cameron and co-writers crafted a story to be told over four additional movies. A third “Avatar” instalment and part of a fourth already have been filmed.
In “The Way of Water,” actors Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana return as Jake Sully and Neytiri 10 years later, now parents of five children. Their peaceful life is interrupted when the Sky People, the Na’vi name for humans, return to go after Jake.
“A huge loss” – Fashion expert on the death of designer Vivienne Westwood
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022
As the person who dressed the Sex Pistols, Vivienne Westwood, who died on Thursday at the age of 81, was synonymous with 1970s punk rock, a rebelliousness that remained the hallmark of an unapologetically political designer who became one of British fashion’s biggest names.
“Vivienne Westwood died today, peacefully and surrounded by her family, in Clapham, South London. The world needs people like Vivienne to make a change for the better,” her fashion house said on Twitter.
Her store in Los Angeles was closed with a sign reading, ‘Due to unforeseen circumstances, we will be closed until further notice.” A single bouquet of white roses lay in the store’s doorway.
Prominent fashion writer, Sasha Wilkins, behind the popular lifestyle and fashion blog LibertyLondonGirl.com, told Reuters “The death of Dame Vivienne Westwood is, of course, a huge loss not just the British fashion industry but the global fashion industry as well. I think her influence over the last 50, 60 years really cannot be overestimated. She really was a true iconoclast.”
Climate change, pollution, and her support for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange were all fodder for protest T-shirts or banners carried by her models on the runway.
She dressed up as then-prime minister Margaret Thatcher for a magazine cover in 1989 and drove a white tank near the country home of a later British leader, David Cameron, to protest against fracking.
The rebel was inducted into Britain’s establishment in 1992 by Queen Elizabeth who awarded her the Order of the British Empire medal. But, ever keen to shock, Westwood turned up at Buckingham Palace without underwear – a fact she proved to photographers by a revealing twirl of her skirt.
“The only reason I am in fashion is to destroy the word ‘conformity’,” Westwood said in her 2014 biography. “Nothing is interesting to me unless it’s got that element.”
Instantly recognizable with her orange or white hair, Westwood first made a name for herself in punk fashion in 1970s London, dressing the punk rock band that defined the genre.
Together with the Sex Pistols’ manager, Malcolm McLaren, she defied the hippie trends of the time to sell rock’n’roll-inspired clothing.
They moved on to torn outfits adorned with chains as well as latex and fetish pieces that they sold at their shop in London’s King’s Road variously called “Let It Rock,” “Sex” and “Seditionaries,” among other names.
They used prints of swastikas, naked breasts and, perhaps most well-known, an image of the queen with a safety pin through her lips. Favorite items included sleeveless black T-shirts, studded, with zips, safety pins or bleached chicken bones.
“There was no punk before me and Malcolm,” Westwood said in the biography. “And the other thing you should know about punk too: it was a total blast.”
Born Vivienne Isabel Swire on April 8, 1941, in the English Midlands town of Glossop, Westwood grew up at a time of rationing during and after World War Two.
A recycling mentality pervaded her work, and she repeatedly told fashionistas to “choose well” and “buy less.” From the late 1960s, she lived in a small flat in south London for some 30 years and cycled to work.
When she was a teenager, her parents, a greengrocer and a cotton weaver moved the family to north London where she studied jewellery-making and silversmithing before re-training as a teacher.
While she taught at a primary school, she met her first husband, Derek Westwood, marrying him in a homemade dress. Their son Ben was born in 1963, and the couple divorced in 1966.
Now a single mother, Westwood was selling jewellery on London’s Portobello Road when she met art student McLaren who would go on to be her partner romantically and professionally. They had a son, Joe Corre, co-founder of the lingerie brand Agent Provocateur.
After the Sex Pistols split, the two held their first catwalk show in 1981, presenting a “new romantic” look of African-style patterns, buccaneer trousers and sashes.
Westwood, by then in her forties, began to slowly forge her own path in fashion, eventually separating from McLaren in the early 1980s.
Often looking to history, her influential designs have included corsets, Harris Tweed suits and taffeta ballgowns.
Her 1985 “Mini-Crini” line introduced her short puffed skirt and a more fitted silhouette. Her sky-high platform shoes garnered worldwide attention in 1993 when model Naomi Campbell stumbled on the catwalk in a pair.
“My clothes have a story. They have an identity. They have character and a purpose,” Westwood said.
“That’s why they become classics. Because they keep on telling a story. They are still telling it.”
The Westwood brand flourished in the 1990s, with fashionistas flocking to her runway shows in Paris, and stores opening around the world selling her lines, accessories and perfumes.
She met her second husband, Andreas Kronthaler, teaching fashion in Vienna. They married in 1993 and he later became her creative partner.
Westwood used her public profile to champion issues including nuclear disarmament and to protest against anti-terrorism laws and government spending policies that hit the poor. She held a large “climate revolution” banner at the 2012 Paralympics closing ceremony in London and frequently turned her models into catwalk eco-warriors.
“I’ve always had a political agenda,” Westwood told L’Officiel fashion magazine in 2018.
Ten-man Thailand salvage draw against Indonesia to stay top of group
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022
Ten-man Thailand salvaged a 1-1 draw with Indonesia in the 2022 Asean Football Federation (AFF) Championship on Friday in Jakarta to stay top of Group A.
Marc Klok fired Indonesia into the lead in the 48th minute from the penalty spot after Theerathon Bunmathan’s handball earned a yellow card.
Things looked bleak for defending champions Thailand when Sanrawat Dechmitr was shown a straight red for hacking down a home player in the 63rd minute. But the depleted War Elephants roared back with Sarach Yooyen’s strike from the edge of the area with 11 minutes left in the match.
Thailand remain top of Group A with Indonesia in second on goal difference. Cambodia cemented their grip on third place in the group with a 5-1 thrashing of Brunei in Phnom Penh to keep alive hopes of a top-two finish and a place in the semi-finals.
Thailand next play Cambodia at Thammasat University on Monday (kick-off 7.30pm). Fans can watch the match live on MCOT HD30 and T-Sport 7 channels.
Thailand’s manager Mano Polking praised his players for salvaging a draw after going a goal behind and losing one man. He added that the referee had made the right decision in sending off Sanrawat as the tackle clearly deserved a red card.
Messi, Ronaldo share condolences after death of Brazil soccer great Pele
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022
THE NATION
Pele, the legendary Brazilian soccer player who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history, died on Thursday (December 29) at the age of 82.
Tributes poured in from across the worlds of sport, politics and popular culture for a figure who epitomised Brazil’s dominance of the beautiful game.
“Rest in peace, @pele,” said Argentina captain Lionel Messi on Twitter.
Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo wrote: “The love you always showed me was reciprocated in every moment we shared even from distance. He will never be forgotten and his memory will live forever in each and every one of us football lovers. Rest in peace King Pelé”.
Pele, whose given name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, joined Santos in 1956 and turned the small coastal club into one of the most famous names in football. A wake is expected to be held at Santos’ Urbano Caldeira stadium, most commonly known as Vila Belmiro, on Monday (January 2), the club’s press officer said.
Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal receives the FIFA World Player 2008 award from soccer legend Pele during the FIFA World Player of the Year awards ceremony in Zurich, Switzerland, January 12, 2009.Lionel Messi of Argentina (L), FIFA World Player of the Year holds his FIFA Ballon d
Brazil soccer great Pele dies after prolonged hospital stay
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022
THE NATION
Pele, the magical Brazilian soccer star who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history, died at the age of 82, his daughter said on Instagram on Thursday (December 29).
He had been in and out of hospital in recent months after a tumor was found on his colon.
Pele, whose given name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, scored a world record 1,281 goals, and is the only player ever to win the World Cup three times.
With sublime skills and a winning smile, he helped make soccer the world’s most popular sport and he charmed popes, presidents and Hollywood stars in a seven-decade career as player and ambassador for the sport.
Born on Oct. 23, 1940, in the small Minas Gerais town of Tres Corações, or “Three Hearts”, Edson Arantes do Nascimento learned the game from his father, a semi-professional player whose promising career was derailed by a knee injury.
Several aspects of his youth are obscured by myth, including the origin of his famous nickname. As Pele (sometimes) told it, he often played as goalkeeper in neighborhood games, and kids began comparing him to a local player named “Bile” – and the letters got twisted over the years.
Whatever the truth, he was soon dazzling scouts not as a goalkeeper but as an attacking forward – a prototype number 10.
He was respected for his range of talents, and more so than any player since, he could do it all: He was two-footed, had tremendous pace and stamina, he could head, pass, tackle – and of course, he could score goals.
He joined Santos at the age of 15 and turned the small coastal club into one of the most famous names in football.
Brazilian soccer legend Pele shows off his six domestic championship medals at a Brazilian soccer confederation event recognising the previous incarnations of the Brazilian soccer championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, December 22, 2010.
Over a glittering 18-year spell at the club he won every honor in Brazilian football as well as two Copa Libertadores – the South American equivalent of the Champions League – and two Intercontinental Cups, the annual tournament held between the best teams in Europe and South America.
His talent was soon recognized by the national team and he was chosen for the Brazil squad heading to the 1958 World Cup in Sweden – although a team psychologist called the 17-year-old “obviously infantile” and advised against playing him.
Pele went on to score a hat-trick within one half of the semi-final against France, and another two goals in the final against the host Swedish team – helping Brazil to its first-ever championship.
Brazil
Injuries kept him out of all but two games in the 1962 Cup, which Brazil won. At the 1970 tournament in Mexico, a now fully mature 29-year-old Pele won the title for a third time with a Brazil side that included other stars such as Carlos Alberto Torres and Tostão, and is considered by many to be the greatest team ever.
Pele initially retired in 1974 but after finding that ill-advised investments had left him broke he accepted an offer the following year to play in the fledgling North American Soccer League for the then-astonishing sum of about $1 million a year.
Pele’s charisma dazzled even hardened New Yorkers. He hobnobbed with celebrities and once shared a table at the famed Studio 54 nightclub with Mick Jagger, Rod Stewart and Andy Warhol – who called Pele the exception to his saying that everyone would have 15 minutes of fame.
Even in such company, Pele stayed away from alcohol and drugs, saying he needed to protect his body and serve as a role model for kids.
He admitted to other “weaknesses,” though. His two divorces, numerous affairs, and the two children he acknowledged fathering outside of marriage fueled perceptions of a gap between the squeaky-clean corporate pitchman and the elusive real-life person who preferred to be called Edson.
On the field, Pele led the New York Cosmos to the league championship in 1977 and attracted millions of fans to a sport that had previously seemed inaccessible and European.
Years later, when the United States won the right to host the 1994 World Cup, the head of the U.S. soccer federation called Pele the “most important” reason why.
Pele’s 1,281 goals in 1,366 games, as tabulated by FIFA’s website, came at a startling rate of 0.94 per match. Some of those were friendlies or came in games played as part of his military service, but he was just as prolific in official tournaments, with 757 goals in 812 games.
Pele had suffered from a series of health issues in recent years, including hip surgery that left him with recurring pain and trouble walking unaided. He reduced his public appearances, but remained active on social media.
Pele is survived by six known children. A seventh, whom he didn’t recognize as his own for years, died of cancer in 2006.
Brazilian soccer legend Pele tosses a ball with physical therapist Kamila in Sao Paulo, Brazil in this still image obtained via undated social media video released on Pele
Two Thai movies named among best 25 Asian films of 2022
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022
Stephanie Adair
Two Thai films have been named among the best 25 Asian Films of 2022 by asianmoviepulse.com. Sitting at No 15 is “Leio” directed by Chalit Kraileadmongkol and Chitpol Ruanggun.
The film tells the story of Kao (Golf Pichaya Nitipaisankul), a fading pop star who returns to his hometown and joins a contest to drill for groundwater with a winning prize of 1 million baht.
He teams up with Jane (Natthacha De Souza) and cousin Yo (Supachai Suwannaorn) to explore cave tunnels, unaware they hide a mysterious and terrifying beast.
The film earned mixed reviews from Thai viewers but in October, Screen Daily reported that “Leio” will be remade by British production company SC Films International.
Sitting at No 9 is “Fast and Feel Love” directed by Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit, whose career spans indie films such as “Mary is Happy” to top-selling mainstream features like “Heart Attack” that filled cinemas with people of all ages.
This late coming-of-age film centres on Kao (Nat Kitcharit) a sport-stacking world champion who is dumped by his long-time girlfriend, Jay (Urassaya Sperbund), and is forced to learn life skills to care for himself.
The film explores childhood dreams and the reality of adulthood as Kao and Jay give up what they love to move on and grow as people.
Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal receives the FIFA World Player 2008 award from soccer legend Pele during the FIFA World Player of the Year awards ceremony in Zurich, Switzerland, January 12, 2009.
Brazilian soccer legend Pele shows off his six domestic championship medals at a Brazilian soccer confederation event recognising the previous incarnations of the Brazilian soccer championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, December 22, 2010.
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