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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 already deflated property prices, which may contract by 30-50 percent, according to industry sources.

“The continued political unrest and recent violence has exacerbated already challenging conditions for Thai real estate,” said Suphin Mechuchep, managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle Management Limited. “Across the board, foreign investors have remained cautious with some postponing and even cancelling new investments in Thailand.” 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…

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…

Thailand’s economic outlook remains decidedly bleak, but in Bangkok, some are bucking the trend
by Greg Lowe

Some Bangkok mid-range condominium projects are bucking market trends by achieving record sales amidst an increasingly negative domestic economic outlook.

Developments in prime locations have sold out in a matter of hours in some cases, as developers resort to increasingly innovative incentives to lure customers. But while buyers are increasingly Thais purchasing properties to live in, rather than making speculative investments, the rush to provide access to credit and the segment´s surge in demand could yield a disturbing rise in defaults at transfer, industry sources say. Read more…

Some property brokers and analysts forecast a 20-30 percent price correction as resort-grade property
by Greg Lowe

Some property brokers and analysts forecast a 20-30 percent price correction as resort-grade property undergoes a decline similar to plummeting markets in Hong Kong, Singapore and London. Others said the lack of buyer and developer leveraging means sales will simply stagnate until the market picks up within the next two years.

Resort-area sales are seizing up inline with the rest of the country´s property market, parts of which have been in trouble for two years, said Robert Collins, managing director Savills (Thailand). Read more…

ASEAN’S 14th summit concluded in Thailand on March 1 having made some significant economic and political developments, but the association’s lofty goals will be hindered by protectionism and its non-interference policy, experts say.

The Asean Cha-am Hua Hin Declaration affirmed the 10 member states’ commitment to free trade, the development of regional economic, social and cultural integration, and the creation of the Asean Economic Community (AEC) by 2015. [Read more →]

By GREG LOWE
IN BANGKOK

DETERIORATING asset quality is becoming a serious issue for Thailand’s commercial banks, according to new central bank figures, but analysts say the sector can face down the recession due to its strong fundamentals.

Bank of Thailand figures for the last quarter showed that re-entry non-performing loans (NPLs) – failed loans that became NPLs again after restructuring – accounted for more than half of the 38 billion baht (S$1.63 billion) of loans that turned bad in the commercial banking sector. [Read more →]

Greg Lowe | 26 Feb 2009
World Politics Review

When Thai security forces recently raided the offices of the Working Group on Justice for Peace (WGJP) in the country’s insurgency-torn south, it may have been business-as-usual for a military with a checkered human rights record. But a report released last week by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) shows this is part of a disturbing global trend.

The report, “Assessing Damage, Urging Actions: Report of the Eminent Jurists Panel on Terrorism, Counterterrorism and Human Rights,” argues that the Bush administration’s post-9/11 “war paradigm” has led to a globalization of extraordinary legal measures which result in an unprecedented corrosive effect on international human rights law. The three-year global study — carried out by an eight-member panel of jurists in 16 hearings around the world — says the corresponding use of counterterrorist policies and the increased powers of intelligence agencies is subverting national criminal justice systems and undermining long-established legal principles. Read more…

By GREG LOWE
IN BANGKOK

AIRLINES are yet to be compensated for losses they suffered when anti-government protesters blockaded Thai airports last year, despite government assurances of financial support.

Some 350,000 tourists were stranded in Bangkok and 3.4 million prevented from entering Thailand when a group called the People’s Alliance for Democracy seized the city’s two international airports, Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang, from Nov 25 to Dec 4 last year. [Read more →]

By GREG LOWE
IN BANGKOK

THAILAND’S economy may be the worst hit in Asia as the global slump tightens its grip on the region, says Moody’s Economy.com.

Yesterday’s interest rate cut by the Thai central bank will have little impact on productivity, according to analysts, who predict further cuts in the near-term. [Read more →]