Bangkok Post
Govt speeding up megaprojects
The government is expediting the Transport Ministry’s mega-investment projects worth almost 2 trillion baht to stimulate financial flows and deal with anticipated volatility in the global economy next year.Kobsak Pootrakul, deputy secretary-general for political affairs to the prime minister, said the Transport Ministry’s 44 projects ...
Bangkok Post Reporter
R&D spend growing in 'leaps and bounds'
The country’s research and development (R&D) investments are expected to amount to 200 billion baht this year, up 32% from last year, according to Office of the National Science Technology and Innovation Policy Office.The investments accounting for 1.2% of GDP are largely made on R&D ...
Thodsapol Hongtong
Baht may be primed for further gains
The Thai baht has been the runaway success among Asian currencies this year — surging more than 6% while the US-China trade war has punished peers such as the South Korean won and Chinese yuan. There are two reasons why it may rise even more.Keep ...
Experts warn of 'endless' flood cycle
Engineers have warned that Thailand will remain trapped in a cycle of flooding unless the government expands natural catchment areas, raises flood embankments and builds more underground drainage systems.The Council of Engineers Thailand (CoE) and the Engineering Institute of Thailand (EIT) yesterday proposed solutions to ...
Supoj Wancharoen
B100bn-plus sought for rural stimulus
The Finance Ministry estimates that more than 100 billion baht is needed to fund a strategy of sustainable development for the rural economy to thoroughly cover 30 million poor people in the segment.The ministry will hold a meeting with related agencies, including the Bank for ...
Wichit Chantanusornsiri
Trade war bolsters Chinese interest in Thailand
More Chinese manufacturers are looking to Thailand as a production base to avoid US tariffs, based on trends in demand for industrial estates.WHA Corp, the top Thai provider of such estates, said it expects Chinese companies to account for as much as half of its ...
Politics of regional trade liberalisation
As multilateral trade negotiations have become unworkable, regional and bilateral alternatives are on the rise. In Thailand’s neighbourhood, the most consequential of these trade vehicles is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Keep reading ...
Thitinan Pongsudhirak
China, Thailand agree to boost cooperation
Thailand and China on Thursday agreed to work together to boost ties in all areas.The agreement was announced after a meeting between Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Song Tao, head of China’s International Liaison Department, at Government House on Thursday.Keep reading ...
Mongkol Bangprapa
Thailand's 'wicked' development trap
For almost five decades now, Thailand has been a victim of the middle-income trap. From the 1970s to the 2000s, the country was ranked by the World Bank as lower-middle-income, advancing to upper-middle status in 2011. Considering the ongoing political uncertainty and weak governance institutions, ...
Fuel subsidies agreed for three months
The Energy Policy Administration Committee (Epac) has agreed to reduce a levy collection from gasoline and diesel users by another one baht and 60 satang per litre respectively from Wednesday.The levy reduction is part of urgent measures to tackle a short-term price hike in global ...
Lamonphet Apisitniran