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Baht weakens but all eyes on direction of Asian markets

NationalJan 12. 2021

By THE NATION

The baht opened at 30.17 to the US dollar on Tuesday, weakening from 30.15 at close on Monday.

The Thai currency is likely to move between 30.12 and 30.32, said Jitipol Puksamatanan, the head of the “Easy Invest” team at SCB Securities.

On Monday night, the financial markets were stirred by investors selling stocks that grew at the beginning of this year.

Some observers are concerned about the ban on Donald Trump by social media companies, raising questions about the limits of these companies’ powers.

The Nasdaq index fell by 1.25 per cent, while the S&P 500 and Stoxx 600 dropped by 0.6 and 0.7 per cent, respectively.

The risk-off situation of the market strengthened the dollar to its highest level in the past three weeks, while the Australia and New Zealand dollars weakened by 0.6 and 0.9 per cent respectively.

The price of Bitcoin also dropped by 8 per cent to $35,500, and the US Ten-Year Treasury yield decreased by 1 per cent to 1.13 per cent.

Jitipol added that the price of WTI crude oil and gold had changed slightly on Monday.

In Thailand, the baht weakened, pressured by the stronger dollar, prompting foreign investors to sell risk assets in Thailand for speculation.

On Tuesday, he advised investors to monitor capital markets, explaining that a change in Asian markets could pressure the baht and other currencies in emerging markets to continually weaken.

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SME NPLs soar as pandemic hits them hard

NationalJan 12. 2021

By THE NATION

Non-performing loans (NPL) of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have risen to Bt229 billion, or 6 per cent of the country’s total loans, due to impact from the Covid-19 pandemic, the Federation of Thai SMEs said.

“Small and medium entrepreneurs have been suffering since the Covid-19 outbreak in Thailand in 2019,” said Saengchai Theerakulwanich, the federation’s secretary-general. “The Bank of Thailand has revealed that total NPLs of SMEs made up 6 per cent of the country’s Bt3.5-trillion total loans, or about Bt229 billion.

“Small businesses have been hit the hardest, especially small restaurants and tour operators, who have been ordered by the government to temporarily shut down their businesses in a bid to curb the outbreak,” he added.

“Although the government has provided soft loans to SMEs totalling about Bt500 billion, only about 70,000 SMEs could access the loan, while the rest are not qualified due to the criteria set by financial institutions that provide them. The SMEs also had a hard time accessing the Social Security Fund, which is worth Bt30 billion.”

The federation is worried that the latest outbreak reported since last December will worsen the situation despite the arrival of the Covid-19 vaccine. “We estimate that it could be the third or fourth quarter of 2021 when the situation could return to normal for SMEs,” he said.

Saengchai added that there were about 3.1 million SMEs in Thailand who hire about 12 million people and contribute up to 35 per cent of the country’s GDP.

“SMEs are the foundation of the country’s economy, therefore the government must make sure that they can access financial aid during the new Covid-19 wave to mitigate the impact on their operations.”

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‘MorChana’ application users get relief from data usage fee

NationalJan 12. 2021

By THE NATION

Mobile operators AIS, True, DTAC, NT (National Telecom Plc) and 3BB will not charge data usage fee for users of the “MorChana” (Doctors Win) application for three months, starting January 11, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) said on Monday.

The move follows discussions the NBTC held with mobile and internet operators to come up with measures to help alleviate people’s financial burden amid the new Covid-19 outbreak, NBTC acting secretary-general Trairat Wiriyasirikul said.

The “MorChana” application, launched on April 10 last year, records users’ movements in order to track and trace new infections. The app also provides information on the risk of infection in different places, which are marked red, orange, yellow or green, based on exposure to the virus.

To promote working from home and reduce the risk of the virus spreading, the NBTC and operators have also come up with more assistance for internet users.

“Users of fixed broadband or home internet would receive free speed adjustment to at least 100/100Mbps for fiber network, and at maximum capacity of non-fiber network [such as xDSL],” said Trairat. “Meanwhile, users of mobile broadband can choose a special package priced at Bt79 per month, which will provide unlimited data at maximum speed of 10Mbps for 30 days.

“The NBTC has also urged all operators to maintain their signal stability to support those who have to work from home, as well as during the registration of the second phase of the government’s ‘Let’s Go Halves’ co-payment shopping campaign,” Trairat added.

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Woman working at karaoke joint first Covid-19 case in Roi Et

NationalJan 12. 2021

By THE NATION

A 48-year-old woman has tested positive for Covid-19, the first case in Roi Et province after the latest outbreak of the disease in December.

Roi Et Governor Chayan Sirimas said on Monday that the woman works at a karaoke joint in the Sriracha district of Chonburi province.

“She had close contact with another patient from Chonburi province [her younger sister] who tested positive earlier on January 9. She then took a test on January 10 at Roi Et Hospital and found that she was also infected.

“Both patients have symptoms of coughing and sore throat with no fever,” he added.

The timeline and travel history of Roi Et’s first patient is as follows:

January 1: She, her sister and her sister’s husband travel from Chonburi’s Sriracha district to Roi Et’s Muang district in a personal car.

January 4-6: She visits a local market, wearing a face mask.

January 5: Her sister and husband return to Chonburi in their personal car.

January 7: She is informed by Sriracha public health office that she carries high risk as one of the customers at the karaoke joint where she works has tested positive for Covid-19. The woman is not tested on that day but her sister, who also works at the same place, takes a test at Chonburi Hospital on January 8.

January 9: Her sister is confirmed as infected.

January 10: Her sister’s husband also tests positive. The woman then takes a test and is found to be infected.

Sriracha public health office also reported that 10 co-workers from the karaoke joint had tested positive for Covid-19.

Nine family members were reported to have had close contact with the sisters. They have been tested and all were negative. Seven persons have had close contact with the husband. Three have already tested negative while four are awaiting results.

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Cool and windy in upper Thailand, strong wind waves on southern coast

NationalJan 12. 2021

By THE NATION

The Thailand Meteorological Department said on Tuesday that the high-pressure system from China covers upper Thailand, resulting in cool to cold weather and strong winds. Temperature is expected to fall 4-6 degrees Celsius in the North and 2-4°C in the Northeast, the Central and the East. Mountaintops are cold to very cold with frost in some areas.

Meanwhile, the strong northeast monsoon prevailing across the Gulf and the South triggers strong wind waves in the Gulf up to 2-4 metres high. All ships should proceed with caution and small boats should keep ashore until January 13, the department said.

The weather forecast for the next 24 hours:

North: Cold weather with strong winds; minimum temperature 12-15 degrees Celsius, maximum 24-31°C; temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 3-11°C with frost in some areas.

Northeast: Cold to very cold weather with strong winds; minimum temperature 8-12°C, maximum 21-24°C; temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 5-11°C.

Central: Cool to cold weather with strong winds; minimum temperature 14-17°C, maximum 27-28°C.

East: Cool to cold weather with strong winds; minimum temperature 14-21°C, maximum 27-31°C; waves two metres high and over two metres offshore.

South (east coast): Cool weather with strong winds and thundershowers in 30 per cent of the areas; minimum temperature 18-23°C, maximum 27-30°C; waves 2-4 metres high and over four metres during thundershowers.

South (west coast): Mostly cloudy with thundershowers in 20 per cent of the areas; minimum temperature 21-24°C, maximum 30-32°C; waves 1-2 metres high and two metres offshore.

Bangkok and surrounding areas: Cool weather with strong winds; minimum temperature 16-18°C, maximum 27-29°C.

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Cost of coronavirus health coverage to drop 20%, say insurers

NationalJan 12. 2021

By THE NATION

The Thai General Insurance Association estimates the cost of Covid-19 insurance will drop by 20 per cent in 2021, since claims are currently low.

Association chairman Anon Wangwasu added that demand for Covid-19 insurance was still strong due to the second outbreak in Thailand, and extension rates will be high.

Insurance brands are running promotions to attract more customers for their Covid-related coverage, he added.

Meanwhile, the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC) expect claims on Covid-19 insurance policies to rise only slightly from the Bt102 million on 9.87 million insurance policies last month.

The OIC forecasts that claims will peak at Bt130 million on 10.8 million policies in March.

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Pattani city hit by flooding up to 3 metres deep

NationalJan 11. 2021

By The Nation

Large parts of Pattani city remained under water on Monday, despite pressure on the upstream Bang Lan dam easing from around midnight.

Flood levels in neighbourhoods around the Pattani River where still high, especially in the business area of the seaside city. Shops retained sandbag barriers to prevent water from inundating their premises, while high sea levels saw floods up to 3 metres deep in some areas.

Deputy Interior Minister Nipon Boonyamanee inspected the flooded area and revealed that 57,000 households have been affected and were in need of basic necessities including food, medicine, and clean water, which the government would supply as soon as possible. The situation would improve within two weeks if the rain eased off, he said.

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Krungsri appoints new chief information and digital officer

NationalJan 11. 2021

By THE NATION

Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya) has announced the appointment of Sayam Prasitsirigul as chief information and digital officer, to replace Voranuch Dejakaisaya, who has retired.

Sayam has more than 25 years of experience in leading domestic and international financial institutions, and has delivered outstanding accomplishments for Krungsri and the SME Banking Group during his nine years of service so far, said the bank.

He had led the SME banking business to achieve solid growth and secured a leading position for Krungsri in SME banking business in Thailand, it added.

It said that as chief information and digital officer, Sayam will draw on his extensive experience and expertise in strategic planning, business management and analysis, and product and service development together with his engineering and IT background, to help Krungsri achieve even more sustainable growth in the future.

Sayam will lead digital and innovation in various aspects, including digital banking and innovation, IT strategic planning and governance, IT core banking mainframe solutions and operations, IT infrastructure and operations technology, and IT security.

Sayam holds a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering for Chulalongkorn University and a Master’s in Business Administration from the Claremont Graduate School, US.

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New wave of infections pushes up price of masks

NationalJan 11. 2021

By The Nation

The new wave of Covid-19 infections has pushed up the price of face masks, with boxes of 50 pieces being sold for Bt150 apiece – far higher than the regulated price of Bt125 per box of 50 pieces.

The Internal Trade Department has set the price of face masks at Bt2.5 per piece.

Some merchants are importing masks from China and Vietnam at between Bt30 and Bt90 per box of 50 pieces, which they are splitting into packs of five or 20 pieces before retailing them at Bt10 and Bt40 per pack.

Some retailers are even charging as much as Bt33 for packs of five. Their excuse is that they have to buy from middlemen now that factories have reduced their production capacity after the first round of the outbreak subsided.

“We buy face masks from agents at Bt2.50 apiece and have to sell them at Bt4 or Bt5 apiece to make a profit,” retailers say.

Rawat Chindapol, chief executive officer of face-mask manufacturer Misslily MD Supply, said there are two types of masks in the market – surgical masks which fall under the Food and Drug Administration’s jurisdiction, and ordinary cloth masks which are priced based on cost.

Masks also vary in quality and effectiveness.

“There are 17 manufacturers producing masks under the Internal Trade Department’s requirements. Domestic demand should be easily met with each manufacturer producing 5 million pieces daily,” he said.

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What is a field hospital? A medical blogger explains…

NationalJan 11. 2021Photo credit: หมอแซนดี้มีเรื่องเ_า (Mor Sandy Mee Rueang Lao)

By THE NATION

Field hospitals are gaining coverage in the media nowadays, along with the rising number of Covid-19 cases in Thailand. However, since their function is rarely explained clearly, medical blogger Dr Sandy decided to feature the hospitals in her post on Monday.

On her Facebook page “Mor Sandy Mee Rueang Lao” (Dr Sandy has stories to tell), the blogger recounts her visit to a field hospital in Samut Sakhon province, where the latest outbreak emerged in mid-December. The hospital was set up in the grounds of the Wattana factory in Muang district.

Dr Sandy explained that field hospitals are being set up to serve Covid-19 patients which conventional hospitals cannot deal with. Conventional hospitals mainly treat patients who are ill, while field hospitals take care of asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic coronavirus cases.

“The patients are isolated in the field hospitals for 14 days, until they pass the period of infectiousness. If their condition worsens during this quarantine period, medical personnel will send them to hospital for more treatment,” she said.

Photo credit: หมอแซนดี้มีเรื่องเ_า (Mor Sandy Mee Rueang Lao)

Dr Sandy pointed out that contact between medics and patients at field hospitals is limited to reduce infection risks, with isolation wards separated from the clinics where doctors check the patients.

The blogger added that interpreters were on hand to help doctors bridge the language gap with foreign patients. The Samut Sakhon outbreak included many cases among the Burmese migrant worker community.

Dr Sandy also sought to quell fears among local residents, saying the existence of field hospitals is safe for people living nearby. She explained that strict hygiene practices governed the treatment of wastewater and elimination of infectious waste from field hospitals, overseen by government officials.

She also mentioned that all field hospital patients were transported by ambulance and guarded by soldiers to prevent any from escaping from hospitals.

Photo credit: หมอแซนดี้มีเรื่องเ_า (Mor Sandy Mee Rueang Lao)