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Baht unchanged, but ‘could weaken’

NationalFeb 04. 2021

By THE NATION

The baht opened at 30 to the US dollar on Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday’s close.

The Thai currency is likely to move between 29.95 and 30.10 on Thursday, Krungthai market strategist Poon Panichpibool said.

In the short term, the baht’s “reflation trades” status is likely to see a reduction. Investors estimated that the dollar weakened due to an economic recovery in some countries and relaxed polices in the United States.

The present situation will influence investors to sell their risky assets, likely leading to foreign fund flows out of Thailand and weakening the baht, Poon explained.

He also said the baht would at most weaken to 30.10 per US dollar.

The S&P 500 Index meanwhile increased by 0.1 per cent and the Russell 2000 by 0.4 per cent.

The ADP Nonfarm Employment Change showed working positions increased by 170,000, better than the 50,000 expected by the market, while the ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI rose from 56.8 per cent to 58.7 per cent.

The market situation supported the US Ten-Year Treasury yield, which increased by 4 basis points to 1.14 per cent. The crude oil price rose by around 2 per cent, reaching $58.70 (Bt1,760) per barrel.

In the EU, the Stoxx 50 Index closed positively at 0.5 per cent on the heels of Italy sorting out its political problems for now.

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Cabinet earmarks Bt275 million for hosting BIMSTEC meetings

NationalFeb 04. 2021

By THE NATION

A Cabinet meeting on Tuesday approved a budget of Bt275 million to organise the 6th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) meeting and other related meetings in 2022, a news source revealed.

Founded in June 1997, BIMSTEC has seven members – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand, which joined the grouping in December 1997.

“Hosting the BIMSTEC meeting will benefit Thailand in promoting long-term social and economic development among member countries, especially in terms of infrastructure, transportation and integration with a regional production chain under the Bio-Circular-Green economy model,” the source said.

“Furthermore, cooperation between members will help boost economic recovery after the fallout of Covid-19, by creating more jobs in key industries, such as technology, energy, tourism, fisheries and transportation, under the BIMSTEC framework.”

The source also said a study has shown that BIMSTEC members mostly rely on domestic production and consumption as their main economic driver, valued at around 55 to 70 per cent of total gross domestic product.

“It is estimated that in the future BIMSTEC members will develop a need for products and services from Thailand,” the source added.

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Police crack down on Chinese-Singaporean loan shark gang

NationalFeb 04. 2021

By THE NATION

Immigration Police nabbed five Chinese nationals and one Singaporean for allegedly running a mobile application providing loans with interest rates higher than the legal limit. Another 46 – all Thais – were arrested for allegedly working as debt collectors for the application, police chief Pol Lt-General Sompong Chingduang said on Wednesday.

The arrests came after a crackdown on the illegal loan business at a house in Bangkok’s Wangthonglang district.

“The suspects had allegedly opened a mobile application called ‘Speedwallet’, which provided loans of Bt5,000-Bt20,000 per customer and collected interest rates at 12-15 per cent per week, exceeding the legal limit of 15 per cent annually,” Sompong said.

“Police had received complaints from several customers of the application, so we started tracking down the owner. Further investigation also showed that they had previously allegedly run eight applications before Speedwallet and had more than 5,000 customers.”

Sompong said the gang had been renting the house, located in Soi Town in Town 3, and used it as a home office for about a month.

“The company allegedly hired several Thai staff as debt collectors, with a salary of Bt12,000 per month,” he said.

One of the victims reportedly said that the gang gave them only Bt2,900 from a Bt5,000 loan contract, and had requested their mobile phone number and other personal data.

“Anyone who failed to repay their debt would be harassed via phone calls until they paid up,” the victim added.

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GLO announces bounty to nail lottery price gougers

NationalFeb 04. 2021

By THE NATION

The Government Lottery Office (GLO) has come out with a Bt1,000 cash reward for citizens who provide information on lottery price gouging, while officials who make arrests will be rewarded according to the fine in each case but not exceeding Bt2,000, director-general Boonsong Jantrisri said on Wednesday.

“We hope the cash reward will encourage people to become the eyes and ears for officials and consequentially stop sellers from raising the price above the legal limit,” he said.

The GLO is also revising the penalty for lottery price gouging, which had been stipulated in the Government Lottery Office Act of 1974 and states that offenders will face Bt2,000 in fines.

“We aim to increase the fine to Bt10,000 to discourage would-be offenders,” Boonsong said.

He added that in the past four year (2017-2020), 22,153 lottery price gougers were arrested nationwide – 2,339 in 2017, 6,240 in 2018, 7,527 in 2019 and 6,047 last year.

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Cool morning weather in upper Thailand, less rain forecast for the South

NationalFeb 04. 2021

By THE NATION

The Northeast, the Central region and the East will see cool weather and a likely 1-2°C drop in temperatures as a moderate high-pressure system from China moves to cover these regions, the Meteorological Department said on Thursday. It added that the weak northeast monsoon prevails across the Gulf and the South, resulting in less rain in the South.

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

North: Cool to cold weather; temperature lows of 14-21 degrees and highs of 32-36 degrees Celsius. Temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 4-12 degrees Celsius.

Northeast: Cool weather; temperature lows of 16-20 degrees and highs of 29-32 degrees Celsius. Temperature on hilltops is likely to drop to 10-15 degrees.

Central: Cool weather in the morning; temperature lows of 18-21 degrees, highs of 33-36 degrees Celsius.

East: Cool weather in the morning; temperature lows of 18-23 degrees, highs of 31-35 degrees Celsius; waves a metre high and 1-2 metres offshore.

South (east coast): Partly cloudy with thundershowers in 10 per cent of the area; temperature lows of 20-25 degrees, highs of 29-33 degrees Celsius; waves 1-2 metres high and 2 metres during thundershowers.

South (west coast): Partly cloudy with thundershowers in 10 per cent of the area; temperature lows of 23-25 degrees, highs of 31-33 degrees Celsius; waves a metre high and 1-2 metres offshore.

Bangkok and surrounding areas: Cool weather in the morning; temperature lows of 22-23 degrees, highs of 32-34 degrees Celsius.

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Former deputy PM Pong Sarasin dead at 93

NationalFeb 03. 2021

By THE NATION

Former deputy prime minister and businessman Pong Sarasin died on Wednesday at the age of 93.

Pong was a member of the influential Sarasin family and the son of former prime minister Pote Sarasin. He co-founded the Social Action Party with Kukrit Pramoj and twice served as deputy prime minister, under Prem Tinsulanonda from 1986-1988 and under Chatichai Choonhavan in 1988-90.

His funeral will be held at Wat Benchamabophit in Bangkok on Thursday.

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Thai men given chance to join the Army freely

NationalFeb 03. 2021

By The Nation

Thai men who haven’t been conscripted or recruited but want to join the military can register online via www.rcm64.rta.mi.th until February 28.

This is the first time that the Army is giving Thai men a chance to voluntarily join the services.

Colonel Sirichan Ngathong, deputy Army spokesperson, said this move is in line with the Defence Ministry’s policy to introduce reforms, adding that the aim is to recruit 10,000 military officers this year.

“Once the registration is closed, registrants must report to the selection committee on March 5. Those selected must report to the Army in May,” she said.

She said those eligible will be given a choice on how many years they want to spend in the Army based on their education background. They can also choose the unit they want to serve under based on their domicile.

“If registrants serve two years and meet qualifications, they will be given a chance to sit for entrance exams to enrol in the Army’s school for non-commissioned officers,” she added.

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MRTA scraps Orange Line bidding

NationalFeb 03. 2021

By The Nation

In a blow to Bangkok’s mass-transit plans, bidding for the Orange Line to link the east and west of the city was cancelled on Wednesday.

Kittikorn Tanpao, deputy governor of the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA), said the project’s selection committee had scrapped the current tender process for the Bang Khun Non-Min Buri (Suwinthawong) line.

The MRTA, which comes under the Transport Ministry, will now issue a cancellation notice and restart the entire auction process.

The move came after Bangkok Mass Transit System Plc (BTSC), a potential bidder, successfully petitioned the court last September for a reversion to the original bidding criteria.

The new auction will consider private bids according to criteria covering 30 technical points and 70 price points.

The Bt128.13-billion Orange Line project is being run as a 30-year public-private partnership.

The MRTA said it has constructed 70 per cent of the Orange Line’s eastern section from Thailand Cultural Centre to Minburi, which is set to open in 2024. The second-phase western section from Thailand Cultural Centre to Bang Khun Non is scheduled to open in 2026.

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April eyed for launch of driving licence points-deduction system

NationalFeb 03. 2021

By The Nation

Thailand’s delayed points-deduction system for driving licences should finally be launched in April, said the Department of Land Transport (DLT) on Tuesday.

Drivers will start with 100 points on their licence, with deductions varying from 5 points to 35 points according to the seriousness of the traffic offence.

The licence will be suspended when points fall to 50 or below. Drivers must then undergo 2-5 hours of training per offence to restore their points and revalidate their licences.

However, the new system has sparked concern that driver-training facilities will be overwhelmed by demand from drivers who have had their licence suspended.

A 12-point demerit system was hailed as a potential cure for Thailand’s road carnage ahead of its original launch date in December 2019, but has been shelved for more than a year.

The new 100-point system is scheduled for launch on April 1.

However, transport operators have asked the DLT to postpone the measure for another year, so they can prepare and also recover from the impact of Covid-19 on goods traffic and passenger numbers.

DLT director-general Chirute Visalachitra said a meeting had been held to clarify the new driving points system for bus and truck operators.

After gathering public opinion, DLT expects to run driver-training courses from April 1 onward.

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Customers will never go hungry

NationalFeb 03. 2021Photo credit: Pradit Saengdee

By THE NATION

A deliveryman became a small celebrity online when he proved that he would go to any lengths to ensure customers get their food.

In this case, it was fishermen on a boat who had ordered their meal.

On Tuesday, Facebook user Pradit Saengdee posted images of a Food Panda deliveryman paddling a boat to his destination with the caption: “Food Panda has launched a water delivery service”.

The photos drew attention, praise and shares.

The 22-year-old Chachoengsao-based delivery staff, Tanyapisit Eiamkitjakarn, said he was delivering food to customers on Bang Pakong River on Tuesday.

He said he knew the customers personally and knew how to row a boat, so delivering food was not difficult.