thegreglowe.com

While Phuket and Pattaya´s property markets have boomed over the past few years, with high-rise condominiums and luxury villas projects dotting the respective landscapes, something more moderate has been taking place along the Gulf of Thailand´s western coast. Hua Hin, which was established as the country´s first beach resort by King Rama VII in the […]

[Read more →]

Preventing foreigners from owning land and property in Thailand does many things: it protects powerful Thai landlords and agricultural monopolies, forces overseas investors to consider setting up shop in other regional markets, drives Thai capital from the country and provides a pool of nationalist bile for tub-thumping politicians to draw on and whip up a […]

[Read more →]

BANGKOK — Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s recent appointment of Thailand’s former premier, Thaksin Shinawatra, as an economic adviser was the diplomatic equivalent of precision bombing, whose shockwaves have sent relations between the neighboring Southeast Asian nations into a tailspin. But as the dust settles, observers say it is unclear who actually benefited from the […]

[Read more →]

Thailand’s National Anti-Corruption Commission turns 10 today. A member of the public peruses documents detailing the assets and liabilities of former ministers in the Thaksin government, as released by the National Counter-Corruption Commission. Its very existence is testament to the endemic corruption that continues to erode local political, economic and social institutions; it is also […]

[Read more →]

BILL FACES ROCKY PATH by Greg Lowe Government proposals to change land taxation have been cautiously welcomed by the property sector but industry experts say clarification of the bill´s legal definitions are needed and that any new law must be applied evenly and transparently. Questions, however, have been raised by industry observers over whether the […]

[Read more →]

Professor Pakdee Pothisiri has his work cut out. As one of Thailand’s nine anti-corruption commissioners he is in the front line of the battle against graft in the country’s political and public sectors. But he remains upbeat in the face of the Herculean task that lies in front of him and the National Anti-Corruption Commission […]

[Read more →]

Developing an Asian rail network to expand trade and economic development within the region will come a step closer this week when a new intergovernmental agreement comes into force. The Intergovernmental Agreement on the Trans-Asian Railway Network, which commits signatories to co-ordinate the development and operation of international rail routes linking 28 countries, is scheduled […]

[Read more →]

Renewed unrest on the streets of Bangkok has done little to boost confidence in the real estate market by Greg Lowe While the double-impact of economic downturn and political uncertainty will scare-off many potential investor’s in Thailand’s real estate market, it could also provide bargain hunters with better opportunities. The political turmoil will weigh down […]

[Read more →]

Siemens Thailand outlined three investment projects yesterday which it says show its long-term commitment to developing the country’s human capital and sustainable transport systems. But the industrial technology giant would not say how much capital it would inject into the projects, or what the investment horizon would be. Read more…

[Read more →]

By GREG LOWE The global recession and domestic political turmoil have clipped Siemens Thailand’s growth expectations this year but the company still expects its turnover to increase in 2009, says CEO Anthony Chay. The impact of slumping global demand on Thailand’s heavily export-oriented economy is the major factor crimping the profits of Siemens’ industry-dependent operations. […]

[Read more →]