Thailand business news

Integration still a must for Asean (World Economic Forum on East Asia 2012)

Aishwarya Gupta — Thu, 31 May 2012 09:27:01 +0000

Eswar Prasad, professor at Cornell University, noted that for a single currency, a better institution is necessary to ensure smooth integration. For Asean, integration is still an answer.

Thai Court Gives Suspended Sentence to Web Editor

Desk Voice of America — Thu, 31 May 2012 08:30:33 +0000

A Thai court on Wednesday convicted a website operator on computer crimes charges for not quickly removing a posting by a blogger deemed offensive to the country's monarchy. The Bangkok Criminal Court gave an eight-month suspended jail sentence to Chiranuch Premchaiporn for not respecting a court order to promptly remove the comments from her popular news website, Prachatai. She faced up to 20 years in prison. Judge Kampol Rungrat told the court that the comments ...

How Google is Changing Your Brain

Olivier Languepin — Thu, 31 May 2012 05:33:10 +0000

A recent study has confirmed that the search engine Google is changing your brain and altering the way it works, seriously. But then again, this really shouldn’t come as a surprise since any new technology is going to change the way that our neurons fire and brain works.

How can Asean solve its energy trilemma?

Boris Sullivan — Thu, 31 May 2012 04:52:26 +0000

As global leaders descend on Bangkok for the World Economic Forum on East Asia, the focus will be squarely on "Shaping the Region's Future through Connectivity". With Asean countries gearing up for the formation of an Economic Community in 2015, an important part of this agenda will be driving greater energy integration.

Washington celebrates Bangkok Sister City Jubilee

Aishwarya Gupta — Thu, 31 May 2012 04:37:07 +0000

Not only is Thailand the oldest treaty ally of the United States in Asia, Bangkok is the first city that Washington, D.C. established a sister city relationship with back in February, 1962

Burmese musicians sing for refugees of the Kachin conflict

Yukari Sekine — Thu, 31 May 2012 03:07:34 +0000

While President Thein Sein has been declaring publicly that he will not change it reform-course to backward direction, Burma Army has been constantly deploying more battalions in areas held by Kachin Independence Army, military-wing of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).

ASEAN, China to become top trade partners

Zhong Li — Thu, 31 May 2012 01:52:52 +0000

The members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will together become China's top trading partners within the next three years, a trade organization predicted on Wednesday.

Office Rents in Asia Pacific Hold Steady in Q2 (Jones Lang LaSalle)

Zhong Li — Thu, 31 May 2012 01:49:25 +0000

Companies are looking at more creative ways to fit more people in their current space and overall rental increases are being impacted by deals being agreed with rental caps in place. Jones Lang LaSalle’s market experts have shared their expectations for the office leasing markets in Asia Pacific in the second quarter of 2012. In the markets that were experiencing office rental declines in previous quarters, the teams are anticipating a slowdown in the rate of decline, for example a three to four percent fall in Grade A office rents this quarter in Hong Kong compared to an actual 6.3 per cent decline in the first quarter. Similarly, in Singapore a fall of three percent is anticipated by the end of the current quarter, compared to an actual 5.2 percent decline in Q1 2012

Pre-Built raises revenue target in Thailand

Zhong Li — Thu, 31 May 2012 01:49:01 +0000

In the first quarter Pre-Built Plc mainly received condominium projects in Phuket and in the northern provinces of Thailand. The Phuket Post reported that the listed contractor Pre-Built Plc (PREB) has revised this year’s revenue target to THB 4 billion (US$125.4 million) from THB3.7 billion (US$116 million)

Capitalism: A means, not an end

Boris Sullivan — Thu, 31 May 2012 01:00:04 +0000

Adam Smith’s notion of the ‘invisible hand’ has guided multitudes of people to promote ends which were not parts of their original intention.