Channels Ch3 HD recorded 1.253 in the ratings, followed by Workpoint TV with 1.001, MONO 29 0.87 and One HD 0.536.

The company also announced its strategy for the Business Solutions unit to capture the commercial TV market and offer a full range of products to satisfy the needs of businesses across all sectors, the company’s B2B sales director Nattakarn Patoomvorasait said.

“With these information display product offerings for all businesses, LG strongly believes we can maintain our number one position of 40 per cent market share in the digital signage segment and 30 per cent share for the hotel TV sector within 2018,” he said.

Thailand is considered the fastest growing market for Burgundy in Southeast Asia.

The event is being held at Impact Arena, Muang Thong Thani and runs until Saturday.

Organisers expect 9,000 visitors from over 40 countries to attend.

THAI president Sumeth Damrongchaitham said the decision was made after a study of internal and external factors including sharply rising fuel costs, which the airline has been absorbing while competitor airlines have begun to raise their prices.

He was confident that the surcharge increase would not affect ticket sales especially during the tourism season in the final quarter of the year when cabin factor usually exceeds 80 per cent.

“Oil prices have surged dramatically, and there are signs that it will continue [to rise],” he said, adding that jet fuel makes up 30 per cent of the airline’s annual costs. “THAI is in the middle of risk management, but the surcharge increase is seen as a positive move especially in terms of competition. If we raise the surcharge and that affects ticket prices, preventing us from selling tickets, it is Thai International that will feel the effects.”

Sumeth added that the surcharge hike would help THAI compete against other airlines with full service capability. “In the past we had to bear very high costs but our yield is higher than in previous years and higher than the average of other airlines.”

However, THAI customers may think otherwise, as the new ticket prices have been found to be higher by Bt768 on short economy seat flights (Yangon, Penang, Vientiane, Hanoi and Phnom Penh), while business passengers will have to cough up an additional Bt1,152 and first-class passengers Bt1,280.

The hike is even more on longer flights – Bt2,112 to Bt3,712 for (economy – first class) flights to and from New Delhi, Karachi, Dubai, Shanghai and Beijing.

Travellers to Japan will have to pay an additional Bt2,560 to Bt4,800 while the load on London passengers will be even higher at Bt9,280 to Bt12,800.

Meanwhile, THAI and Rolls-Royce have declared open the world’s first research and development project for Trent XWB jet engines. The event was presided over by Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith.

The two-year project is targeted at further testing the Trent XWB-97 engine that was first used in the Airbus A350-1000 in February this year.

“This will enable Rolls-Royce to find the strengths and weaknesses of this engine throughout its life span,” said Surachai Piencharoensak, THAI executive vice president, Technical Department.

THAI’s Technical Department is the first to join hands with Rolls-Royce to participate in Trent XWB engine development with real flight simulation at THAI’s Technical Department. Engine testing is conducted regularly at the test cell in order to improve engine efficiency, to comprehend various limitations to engine usage, product development and inspection plans, and for quality technical maintenance. This marks the first-ever cooperation of its kind that Rolls-Royce has forged with any customer.

Dominic Horwood, Rolls-Royce chief customer officer for civil aerospace, said the collaboration would allow Rolls-Royce to carry out full-scale operations in Thailand ranging from production, maintenance, repair and overhaul, and research and development. He said the company invests US$100 million (Bt3.3 billion) in Thailand annually in order to support its production line.

In 2020, both companies will also co-develop technological capability for maintaining the Trent 700 jet engine to the overhaul level, giving THAI the status of authorised maintenance centre for these engines.

“The previous experiences of unsuccessful business matches show that if both sides are only looking to sell, the chances of success are slim,” Suwanchai told the media at a signing ceremony linking OSMEP and Turkey’s equivalent organisation in a joint action plan.

To increase the chances of success, both sides in a link-up need to be clear on whether they are the buyer or the seller, he explained at the Third Turkish SMEs B2B Meeting with Turkey’s Small and Medium Enterprises Development Organisation (KOSGEB), held in Bangkok. The event included a business matching session for Thai and Turkish SMEs to exchange business knowledge and find opportunities to work together.

The joint action plan’ between OSMEP and KOSGEB aims to promote business cooperation between SMEs from both countries in various industries such as technology and processed agricultural products.

“This time, before even determining whether each party is a seller or buyer, we intend to build good business relations between each party. This way, each Turkish entrepreneur and investor will have their own business networks within Thailand,” said Suwanchai.

When there are good business networks, the business matching between buyers and sellers from both countries are more likely to be long-lasting, as SMEs would gain a better understanding of their target market.

The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1958, and are now negotiating a free-trade agreement. Thailand expects to increase the value of bilateral trade with Turkey from US$1.5 billion (Bt49.2 billion) in 2017 to at least $3 billion after the agreement is implemented, said Kobsak Pootrakool, a minister attached to the Prime Minister’s Office, at the event yesterday.

SMEs are an integral part of both the Thai and Turkish economies. Some 3 million SMEs account for 97 per cent of Thailand’s total number of businesses and employ 78.5 per cent of working people, according to Suwanchai. Turkey also boasts over 3 million SMEs, forming more than 99 per cent of the total number total business, and accounting for 80 per cent of the country’s employment, chimed in Turna Sahin, vice president of KOSGEB. The ceremony was co-organised by OSMEP and KOSGEB, along with the Thailand-Turkey Business Council and Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and held at the Arnoma Grand Hotel Bangkok.

It was the third such meeting and was timed to commemorate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the countries.

A follow-up trade fair and festival for Thai and Turkish businesses will be held from yesterday to September 9 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre. The trade fair will see booths from SMEs of both countries, and enable the businesses to test their target markets and discover how well their products are likely to perform, said Suwanchai.

Currently, nearly 6 million of its customers use mobile banking.

She added that the company holds a 55 per cent stake in a joint venture firm with Xuan Cau Hilldings for the development of Dau Tieng 1 and Dau Tieng 2 solar plants in Vietnam with a total capacity of 420 megawatts.