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Thailand’s oil palm industry is leading the way for regional biopower projects and is more sustainable than operations in Indonesia and Malaysia which have faced global pressure for devastating old-growth forest and taking a wrecking ball to farming communities, experts say. But while the local sector is breaking ground with its renewable energy projects, inefficiency, […]

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By GREG LOWE IN BANGKOK BUSINESSES that have been hit hard by months of protests and deadly clashes on the capital’s streets say that it is too early to assess the full impact of the recent violence on their operations. Protesters rampaged across Bangkok on Wednesday, torching more than 30 buildings, after leaders of the […]

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Last night the atmosphere on Silom Road was a far cry from the clashes between security forces and red shirt supporters on Viphawadi-Rangsit Road earlier that afternoon, which left one soldier dead and 18 people injured. There were a few lines of police and soldiers dressed in riot gear, standing next to razor-wire cordons and […]

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Foreign Office says protests in Bangkok and beyond mean Britons should avoid all but essential visits to Thailand Greg Lowe in Bangkok and Mark Tran ONE THAI SOLDIER has died in clashes north of Bangkok between troops and red-shirted anti-government protesters agitating for the dissolution of parliament. A Reuters photographer said the soldier was shot […]

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By GREG LOWE IN BANGKOK THE government is hopeful that this weekend’s mass protests will pass without violence, but security forces are well prepared for any incident, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya says. Thousands of red-shirt supporters of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday started mobilising from around the country to converge on the capital tomorrow, […]

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By GREG LOWE IN BANGKOK THAI-LISTED companies saw net profits surge by 42 per cent last year to 446.51 billion baht (S$19.13 billion) on sales totalling 6.39 trillion baht, the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) says. The top-performing industry groups were resources, finance, and property and construction respectively, with PTT, Siam Cement, PTT Exploration and […]

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By GREG LOWE IN BANGKOK THE Supreme Court’s landmark ruling to seize 46.37 billion baht (S$1.97 billion) in assets belonging to the family of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is unlikely to have a significant impact on the Stock Exchange of Thailand index or investor sentiment in general, analysts say. Two grenade attacks on Bangkok […]

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The year ahead for Thailand´s hotel and resort development sector will witness a rebound from the impact of the global financial crisis, local recession and domestic political turmoil, according to property experts. But while the outlook is less turbulent, growth will remain anaemic and patchy, and project financing will remain tight. Occupancy levels in Thailand´s […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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