The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Index opened at 1,533.50 on Friday, down 0.61 points or 0.4 per cent.
Krungsri Securities said that the SET on Thursday fell 9 points to 1,533.11, due to speculation by investors, after the index on Wednesday soared by 40 points.
On Friday, the SET is likely to move between 1,520 and 1,545 points despite support for the market from an increase in crude oil price. Moreover, the Fed chairman’s opinion on inflation had boosted US bond yields.
The securities firm suggested that investors buy PTTEP, PTTGC, TOP and IVL, as they benefit from the increasing price of oil. Also, AOT, MINT, CENTEL, CPN, CRC and MAJOR are supported by news of Covid-19 vaccine, and CBG, ICHI, SAPPE, RBF, DOD, PTG and TACC by the weakening baht.
The body of a Navy officer who plunged into the sea off Chonburi province while driving an SUV was retrieved by divers on Thursday.
The Royal Thai Navy announced on Thursday evening that the dead body was found in the driver’s seat of a Toyota Fortuner SUV which had smashed the barrier at Laem Thian Port in Sattahip Naval Base in Chonburi before falling into the sea at around 2.30am on Thursday.
The deceased was identified as petty officer 1st class Chalermphol Rakchat, aged 33 years, who used to work on board the HTMS Chao Phraya 455 frigate.
Officials speculated that the accident likely happened as the driver fell asleep behind the wheel.
After divers had retrieved the body, officials used a crane car to salvage the vehicle from the sea.
The Navy sent their condolences to the deceased’s family and promised to provide assistance.
The price of gold dropped by Bt200 per baht weight in morning trade on Friday, the Gold Traders Association reported.
As of 9.27am, the buying price of a gold bar was Bt24,400 per baht weight and selling price Bt24,500, while gold ornaments were priced at Bt23,967.96 and Bt25,000, respectively.
At close on Thursday, the buying price of a gold bar was Bt24,600 per baht weight and selling price Bt24,700, while gold ornaments were Bt24,149.88 and Bt25,200, respectively.
Spot gold price fell to its lowest point in almost nine months due to rising US bond yield, after Fed chairman Jerome Powell expressed his opinion on inflation in the gold market.
Yod Dome Wildlife Sanctuary on Thursday caught a peahen on camera while sitting on her eggs in Thod Ja Pong forest just 500 metres away from the sanctuary’s field office in Ubon Ratchathani province.
“Officials of the sanctuary were patrolling the area on Thursday morning and found a nest with five eggs, so they set up a camera to get pictures and video of the owner,” said Chaiwat Limlikhit-aksorn, head of Ubon Ratchathani Protected Area Regional Office 9.
Photo: Facebook @DNP1362
“Seeing a wild peahen brooding her eggs is a rare sight even for sanctuary officials. This will be a good opportunity for us to study the life and behaviours of wild peafowls.”
Chaiwat added that peacocks usually built a nest on flat ground covered with bushes or dried leaves.
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“Peahens lay 3-6 eggs per time which usually hatch in 26 days. Their newborns will be covered with soft small feathers and will follow their mother around for at least six months, before they leave their mum and look for food alone,” he added.
A temporary steel staircase has been installed at a damaged footbridge on Rama II Road in Bangkok’s Bang Khun Thien district, the Thonburi Highway District Office announced on Thursday via its Facebook page.
Photo: Facebook @ThonburiDOH
The bridge at Km 14+075 had been damaged since March 2 when an SUV reportedly smashed into the steps of the bridge, rendering the bridge unsafe for use and leaving pedestrians stranded on both sides of the eight-lane Rama II Road. The bridge is the only way for pedestrians to cross Rama II Road. The next bridge is about three kilometres away.
Officials added that repair work on the bridge would start on Friday, and expected the work to be finish within seven days. They advised pedestrians to use the temporary staircase carefully during the construction period.
For more information, contact the Department of Highways hotline at 1586.
The Thailand Meteorological Department said on Friday (March 5) that the southerly and southeasterly winds bring humidity from the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand to upper parts of the country.
Isolated thundershowers are possible in the lower North, Northeast, Central and East. People in upper Thailand should beware of the severe conditions, the department said.
Meanwhile, the easterly winds prevailing over the South and the Gulf bring isolated thundershowers to the areas.
The weather forecast for the next 24 hours:
North: Hot weather with haze during the day; isolated thundershowers in 10 per cent of the areas; temperature lows of 16-24 degrees Celsius, highs of 34-37°C.
Northeast: Isolated thundershowers in 20 per cent of the areas; temperature lows of 22-24°C, highs of 32-37°C.
Central: Hot weather with haze during the day, isolated thundershowers in 10 per cent of the areas; temperature lows of 23-25°C, highs of 35-37°C.
East: Hot weather with haze during the day, isolated thundershowers in 20 per cent of the areas; temperature lows of 23-25°C, highs of 32-36°C; waves a metre high and 1-2 metres offshore.
South (east coast): Isolated thundershowers in 10 per cent of the areas; temperature lows of 23-24°C, highs of 31-35°C; waves 1-2 metres high and two metres during thundershowers.
South (west coast): Isolated thundershowers in 10 per cent of the areas; temperature lows of 23-24°C, highs of 34-36°C; waves a metre high and over a metre offshore.
Bangkok and surrounding areas: Hot weather with haze during the day; temperature lows of 24-26°C, highs of 34-36°C.
At the beginning of 2021, Automated Peritoneal Dialysis (APD) was added to the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) to improve the quality of life for patients living with chronic kidney disease.
Manee Paintanphol, a patient at Ban Phaeo Hospital in Samut Sakhon, is the first UCS beneficiary to receive APD – a treatment for kidney failure, which uses an automated cycler to fill the patient’s abdomen with dialysate before draining it into a sterile bag. This process is called “exchange”.
For two years she had been undergoing the Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD), which was a burden as she had to do the exchange four times a day, between 6am and 11pm. She also had to change five to six bags of dialysate during the process.
The treatment made her feel worried and restless.
“Sometimes I fell asleep before 11pm, as I’m old and my health is not so good. Sometimes I missed the exchange, which made my belly swell up,” she said.
Manee’s struggles were noticed by her doctor, who then suggested she register for APD with the UCS.
When she began using APD earlier this year, she was able to sleep through the night and only had to change two bags of dialysate per day.
“The doctor set the machine up for me. All I have to do is press the green button and change the dialysate bags,” she said. “Now I can sleep better and feel stronger.”
Dr Piyathida Jungsaman, a kidney specialist at Ban Phaeo Hospital, said APD suited patients who have used CAPD for a long time and their abdominal lining has weakened, requiring them to increase the amount of dialysate.
APD is also good for patients with kidney failure who cannot be treated via haemodialysis due to their health and financial condition.
Sakchai Kanjanawatana, secretary-general of the National Health Security Office (NHSO) which oversees the UCS, said CAPD has been provided to UCS beneficiaries for 14 years now, allowing patients with final-stage kidney disease to survive.
So far, more than 30,000 UCS beneficiaries receive CAPD.
APD has been available for beneficiaries of the Social Security Scheme and the Civil Servant Medical Benefits Scheme before it was added to the UCS benefits package early this year.
NHSO aims to provide APD to at least 100 patients this year. So far, 173 patients have registered for the system, and doctors from 20 healthcare units nationwide have expressed interest in obtaining APD for their patients.
The Office of Transport and Traffic Policy has hired Index International Group (IND) to draft a study for a land bridge connecting the Gulf of Thailand and Andaman Sea via the Southern Economic Corridor (SEC). The project is designed to link up the SEC with the Eastern Economic Corridor.
Launched on Tuesday (March 2), the Bt4.47-billion project study will run until September 1, 2023. The blueprint for the project will be finalised at the beginning of 2024, after which investment budgets and bidding will be set.
The project aims to expand the logistics network and connectivity with southern provinces. The Cabinet has approved a budget of Bt74.71 million for a study on how to improve capacity of businesses in the South.
The government on Thursday unveiled its “area quarantine” plan to open Thailand to foreign tourists from next month.
Area quarantine will be piloted in five provinces popular with foreign tourists – Chiang Mai, Phuket, Krabi, Surat Thani (Koh Samui, Koh Pha-ngan) and Chon Buri (Pattaya).
Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn revealed details of the plan after meeting with the Public Health Ministry and 216 tourism operators.
Under the plan’s timeline, tourists will quarantine in their rooms for the first three days and then be swab-tested for Covid-19 at their hotel.
If they test negative, they will be granted access to the whole hotel or resort until their 14-day quarantine ends.
After 14 days they will be tested again. If no infection is found they will be allowed to travel freely through the quarantine area.
The plan will be operated via 29 travel agencies supervised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).
Revenue from foreign tourists generated Bt2 trillion of Thailand’s total Bt3.01-trillion tourism trade in 2019. Tourism accounted for around 17 per cent of GDP in 2019.
The Department of Disease Control of Thailand (DDC) is advising people to be careful with what they eat this summer to avoid food poisoning and diarrhoea.The Meteorological Department said Thailand has officially entered the summer season since Saturday, with temperatures averaging at 35 degrees Celsius in most areas.DDC director-general Dr Opas Karnkawinpong said people should avoid certain foods to avoid food poisoning.According to DDC, 1.342 million, 1.189 million and 915,289 food poisoning and diarrhoea cases were reported during summer in 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively.DDC has advised people to avoid the following dishes:
Opas said diners must ensure the food they are served is hot and clean, adding that ice cubes are also carriers of germs.
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