SAM sold Bt1.375 billion worth of NPAs in the first quarter, up 50 per cent year on year from Bt880 million.

SAM has planned to buy a total of Bt10 billion in non-performing loans (NPLs)from commercial banks this year, of which Bt3.7 billion were purchased in the first quarter of the year.

Niyot says the company expects continuous growth this year , thanks to the recovery of the domestic and global economy and the government’s investments in state infrastructure, particularly the Eastern Economic Corridor.

Most of the company’s existing NPAs are located in potential areas, amounting to a total of Bt22 billion, of which 160 are large assets.

The price of a NPA does not go up quickly, unlike new assets, he said.

For example, the price of a NPA condominium is between Bt50,000 to Bt60,000 per square metre compared with Bt200,000 to Bt300,000 per sqm in the market.

This means property developers can still make profit from developing NPA assets.

The company will launch an aggressive campaign to draw customers this year and will allow them to make reservation of the targeted assets online at all times.

This will enable SAM to make quick sales of NPAs on a low cost basis and can serve customers anytime.

He added that SAM will not revise up the NPA sale target this year despite satisfying sales in the first quarter.

New players

He said the entry of new players in the asset management market has led to higher competition and pushed up NPL prices.

It has also benefited financial institutes that sell NPLs.

Saharatna Benyakul, SAM’s Executive Vice President for Property Management Group, said that in the first quarter many foreign investors purchased SAM NPAs in the EEC and the trend has continued.

Currently the ratio of SAM NPA in EEC is less than 10 per cent of its large NPA asset.

The mining, paper and logistics sectors showed the highest growth in net earnings at 281.3 per cent, 171.4 per cent and 141.4 per cent, respectively.

Electronic appliances, industry and machinery, and construction businesses saw overall year-on-year declines of 45.1 per cent, 42.8 per cent and 30.8 per cent in net profit, according to the research house.

These are the findings of Huobi Research, which published its “2018 H1 Global Blockchain Industry Overview and Prospects” report on Monday.

According to the report, crypto-asset crowd-funding exploded last year, with the amount coming in 23 times more than the 2016 level.

In addition, the report elaborates in-depth aspects of the crypto-assets market, including crypto-market regulation, the blockchain industry and blockchain technology.

Spencer Lee, director of commercial for airline, said the carrier had transported over 1.3 million passengers from Kuala Lumpur to Thailand across a variety of routes last year, and that Thailand is one of the most popular destinations for Malaysians.

Lee said he was excited by the launch of the Kuala Lumpur-Hua Hin route, especially as the inaugural flight secured a load factor of 85 per cent. The airline plans to attract Hua Hin’s many travellers to continue on to Kuala Lumpur to reinforce the route.

Pairin Chuchotethavorn, Thailand’s deputy minister of Transport, said the government has set plans to develop Hua Hin Airport with an aim to increase its ability to accommodate travellers and for commercial airlines to attract more tourists.

Shenzhen Donghai Airlines will use a Boeing 737-800 for the direct flight, which will take about three hours and 40 minutes.

The flights will depart Wanzhou at 11am and arrive in Pattaya at 2.45pm every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The return flights are also scheduled for every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Wan Qinghua, an official with the Wanzhou Airport, said the new service will be the first direct air route linking Wanzhou with a foreign city. – Xinhua