Ramkhamhaeng University has urged royalists and student-led protesters to rally peacefully, a day after the rival groups clashed at its Huamark campus in Bangkok.
Acting rector Asst Prof Wuttisak Lapcharoensap said skirmishes between royalists and protesters on Wednesday evening were “depressing”, adding that neither side had asked permission to rally at the campus.
“After the incident, we asked both parties to leave the area and urged Ramkhamhaeng Network for Democracy protesters to hold their anti-government rally in front of the [university] president’s office instead,” he said. “We also asked police to send more officers to the area.”
The university set out its stance on the protests in six points:
1. Ramkhamhaeng condemns the violence and its perpetrators.
2. The university will not stop students from expressing their views.
3. It asks both royalists and protesters to hold activities peacefully in line with the law.
4. It is ready to assist those injured during the clash yesterday.
5. The university will establish a committee to investigate the incident and will punish any university officials found to be involved.
6. The university asks both sides to respect differences in people’s viewpoints.
Wuttisak also said the university would take legal action against anyone who harmed its students.
“The university will close its entrance when royalists or protesters hold activities in the area,” he added.
Members of Ramkhamhaeng Network for Democracy led by Thitima Butdee, 19, visited Bangkok’s Hua Mark police station on Thursday to file an assault complaint against a group of royalists.
The two groups clashed on Wednesday after yellow-clad royalists broke through metal fencing to get to pro-democracy protesters rallying at Ramkhamhaeng University.
Eyewitnesses said a royalist dropped a speaker onto Thitima, rupturing a tendon in her left foot and leaving her in plaster.The accused man said he had been provoked by the student-led protesters, an allegation rejected by Thimita who also questioned why the adult royalists had shown less emotional stability than the adolescent protesters.She also condemned the royalist group for not tolerating different political viewpoints and resorting to violence.
Profits of nine banks fell by an average 55 per cent in the third quarter this year due to their high reserves to cope with the economic impact of Covid-19.
Excluding Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya), the nine commercial banks’ accumulated third-quarter net profit was Bt23.57 billion, down an average 55.18 per cent from Bt82.13 billion in the same period last year. The banks’ net profit in the first nine months this year was Bt87.18 billion, down 34.5 per cent from Bt133.15 billion from last year.
Most of the drop in profit was attributed to the rise in reserves to cope with debt defaults amid the economic slowdown.
The five banks showing the biggest third-quarter profit drop were CIMB Thai Bank – down 77 per cent to Bt81 million; Siam Commercial Bank – down 68.9 per cent to Bt4.64 billion;
Bangkok Bank – down 57.4 per cent to Bt4.01 billion; Krungthai Bank – down 51.9 per cent to Bt3.05 billion; and Kasikorn Bank – down 32.8 per cent to Bt6.67 billion.
The banks’ total reserves for the first nine months were Bt160.62 billion, up Bt61.35 billion or 61.8 per cent year on year. The three banks with the highest reserves are Tisco Financial Group, up 591 per cent; TMB Bank (129 per cent); and Krungthai Bank (87.7 per cent).
Meanwhile, the nine banks’ held non-performing loans (NPLs) worth a total Bt474.56 billion at the end of the third quarter, up 17.6 per cent year on year. The three banks with the highest NPLs are Krungthai Bank at Bt110.66 billion, up 0.8 per cent; Bangkok Bank at Bt107.74 billion, up 25 per cent; and Kasikorn Bank at Bt96.74 billion, up 21.9 per cent.
Khattiya Intharawichai, Kasikorn Bank’s chief executive officer, said its net profit dropped due to a 70.24 per cent rise in reserves to Bt17.69 billion for expected credit loss during the virus crisis.
Arthid Nanthawithaya, Siam Commercial Bank’s CEO, said SCB had assessed the quality of its loan portfolio carefully and was monitoring loan quality deterioration amid the Covid-19 fallout. The bank’s NPLs rose to 3.32 per cent from 3.05 per cent in June.
Kasikorn Research Centre’s Kanchana Chokpaisansilp predicts banks will face more challenges in the fourth quarter this year because exports and tourism are yet to recover.
“We expect the banks’ fourth-quarter expenses to rise more than the previous quarter from setting up of reserves to cope with future risks, which will see net profits stay in negative territory,” she said.
“Meanwhile, banks’ NPLs this year would rise more than our previous forecast of 3.5 per cent due to increasing risks,” she added.
The Finance Ministry has given the green light to the Treasury Department and the Royal Thai Army to start developing Bangkok’s Benjakitti Forest Park from next month.
Deputy Finance Minister Santi Promphat said Bt652 million will be earmarked for the project, which should be completed by February 2022.
The agreement will be signed on Monday.
Santi said the development will be done in two phases – the first will involve improving the landscape and planting more trees, while the second will include the construction of museums, which should be ready by February 2022.
“The first phase should be completed by June next year, so it can be used to mark the birthday of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother on August 12,” he said.
“For the second phase, we have urged designers to consider a city tower as this will serve as a new destination in Bangkok.
“We have also urged the Treasury Department and related agencies to install solar panels in the park to generate electricity for the Chaipattana aerator and lighting system,” he added.
By The NationSamut Prakan residents witnessed a blazing inferno when a gas pipe allegedly exploded in an industrial estate in Bang Bo district on Thursday. No casualties or injuries were reported as of press time.
Locals, including students from the nearby Preng Wisuttha Tipbodee School, were evacuated as firefighters arrived to control the blaze.
Thailand’s exports continued to recover in September, fetching US$19.6 billion for a smaller-than-expected drop of 3.56 per cent from a year earlier, the Commerce Ministry said on Thursday.
Reuter’s had forecast a drop of 4.08 per cent after exports fell by 7.94 per cent in August.
Imports in September dropped 9.08 per cent year on year, to $17.3 billion, resulting in a $2.23-billion trade surplus, said Pimchanok Vonkorpon, director-general of the ministry’s Trade Policy and Strategy Office.
“In the first nine months of 2020, total exports are at $172.9 billion, decreasing 7.33 per cent year on year, while total imports are at $152.2 billion, decreasing 14.64 per cent,” she said. “Thailand therefore has a trade surplus of $20.6 billion so far [this year].”
Pimchanok added that Asia’s economy is recovering from the Covid-19 fallout faster than those in Europe and the United States.
“This has resulted in rising exports of agricultural products and processed foods to Asian markets,” she said, adding that Thailand’s exports in 2020 are expected to shrink by 6-7 per cent from a year earlier.
She said escalating political tension between the government and pro-democracy demonstrators should have no direct impact on exports, which rely on demand from overseas customers.
“However, it could affect the confidence of foreign investors who might hesitate to invest in Thailand if the government shows a lack of stability,” she added.
“The export sector still looks promising as Thailand produces various products to meet the demand of foreign markets during the outbreak, especially rubber gloves and medical equipment,” she said. “Furthermore, Thai products meet international safety and quality standards.”
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has okayed two quarantine packages for tourists – wellness quarantine that will be held at a medical spa and wellness resort and a long-term care package for the elderly.
Taweesin Visanuyothin, spokesperson for CCSA, said the centre met on Wednesday to discuss seven matters, namely:
• The successful trip of a government delegation from China.
• Permission for British and Czech sailors to enter the country.
• Deciding citizens from which countries can enter the Kingdom under the special tourist visa.
• Allowing airlines to fly in transit passengers.
• Allowing cruise liners to enter Thailand. Some 60 ships with about 650 people on board have applied to anchor in Thailand. The passengers can generate revenue of up to Bt2.1 billion if they are allowed to step on land after undergoing mandatory 14-day quarantine on board and taking the three RT-PCT tests offered.
• Permission for foreign crew waiting to switch ships to step on Thai soil and move in a restricted area.
• Relaxing the wellness quarantine model for foreigners. CCSA found that 1,428 medical tourists and their companions came to Thailand this year, generating revenue of about Bt1 billion.
The Department of Health Service Support, meanwhile, has proposed three models for the wellness quarantine option. The first two have been approved, but CCSA needs to closely study the last one.
The three models, which kick in after the 14-day mandatory quarantine, are:
• A seven to 10 day package at a medical spa, wellness or spa resort offering health programs like fitness, food or beauty with a team of experts or doctors present. Some 40 venues are being considered.
• A one-month package for the elderly, featuring physical therapy, brain training, yoga, meditation, massage, weight loss, stress reduction, basic exercise. Some 20 venues are being considered.
• A 14-day package related to sports and golfing. Some 120 venues are being considered.
The Meteorological Department announced on Thursday that Thailand has officially entered the cool season, with mornings getting very chilly in the upper North.
The department said winds at the altitude of up to 3,500 metres have changed their direction to northeasterly or easterly, while winds above 5,000 metres are coming from the western direction.
The department said some rain is expected in most of Thailand, though the South will continue experiencing heavy rainfall.
Bangkok’s flood defences are being strengthened to deal with water released from the northern part of the country, the city’s governor Aswin Kwanmuang said on Thursday.
On Tuesday, the Royal Irrigation Department warned 11 provinces – Bangkok, Samut Prakan, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Chainat, Singburi, Angthong, Suphanburi, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Lopburi and Uthai Thani – to be ready for more water released from the Chao Phraya Dam in Chai Nut province.
Aswin explained that Bangkok’s flood barriers along the Chao Phraya River can resist water levels of 2,500 to 3,000 cubic metres per second. City officials have been ordered to check and repair barriers along the city’s main river and canals.
Officials have also placed sandbags in flood-prone communities to protect residents. The governor said that city workers were on standby to build temporary bridges in case flooding overwhelmed some areas.
The accused man said he had been provoked by the student-led protesters, an allegation rejected by Thimita who also questioned why the adult royalists had shown less emotional stability than the adolescent protesters.
She also condemned the royalist group for not tolerating different political viewpoints and resorting to violence.
