Thailand’s jewelry exports
expected to grow
3-5 percent this year
Thailand’s jewelry exports are expected to grow 3-5 percent this year,
according to the chairman of the Thai Gems and Jewelry Traders Association.
Association executive Somchai Pornjindarak spoke at the opening of the 52nd
Bangkok Gems and Jewelry Fair. The ceremony was presided over by Deputy
Commerce Minister Nattawut Saikua.
Somchai said the forecast export growth of 3-5 percent was due to the
improving economy of the US, which is Thailand’s main importer of jewelry.
More American orders have appeared, and government has exempted import tax
for jewelry and accessories displayed in the current show.
He believed the show would attract more sellers/buyers and thus encourage
more sales and orders.
Somchai said other factors included road shows and goods expos in other
markets such as the Middle East, Africa and former Soviet Union countries.
Meanwhile, Minister Nattawut said after presiding at the opening ceremony
that he believes Thailand’s jewelry exports would grow as a result of Prime
Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s recent business trip to Mozambique where she
negotiated with its private sector which received a gems mining concession
there to set up a factory in Thailand.
The 52nd Bangkok Gems and Jewelry Fair was held at Impact Muang Thong Thani.
(MCOT)
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China to ink deal for
1.2 million tonnes of Thai rice
China has pledged to buy 1.2 million tonnes of Thai rice,
along with another several hundred thousand tonnes of agricultural produce
with the contracts to be inked in this month, Thai Commerce Minister
Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisarn said on Sunday.
Niwatthamrong announced the deal after his visit to the People’s Republic of
China last week.
Apart from the one million tonnes of Thai rice, the minister said, China
will also buy 300,000 tonnes of cassava and another 200,000 tonnes of
rubber.
He said the contracts will be inked this month with two state enterprises
and the delivery of all produce is expected to be complete within a year.
Niwatthamrong said he has invited Chinese entrepreneurs to invest in the
agri-produce processing industry in Thailand.
The commerce minister is scheduled to visit Russia this week seeking to
expand Thailand’s agri-produce trade. (MCOT)
Excise dept cashes
in on higher tabs
Taxes on alcoholic drinks including beer, wine and liquor
are up 10-15 percent, starting Sept 4, with the Excise Department predicting
a growth in revenue from taxes at more than Bt10 billion this year.
The Cabinet last week approved the new tax package which would be calculated
either from product value or alcohol content.
Somchai Poolsavasdi, Excise Department director general, said taxes for beer
would be Bt155 per liter of pure alcohol or Bt8 per liter of product value.
Traders will be required to pay for either of the two categories, based on
the higher fee.
Tax for wine will be Bt1,000 per liter of pure alcohol and local liquor will
be subject to an extra Bt3 per liter of alcohol degree.
The Excise Department forecast total revenue at Bt130 billion from liquor,
wine and beer this year, he said.
Singh Corporation, one of Thailand’s major beer suppliers, said the company
has yet to announce a revised wholesale price of its beers. (MCOT)
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Thailand’s consumer
confidence worst in 9 months
Confidence among Thai consumers in August plunged to its
lowest level in nine months as the domestic political situation, the higher
cost of living and a volatile global economy tempered Thailand’s economic
outlook.
Thanawat Phonwichai, director of the Centre for Economic and Business
Forecasting at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, said last
week that the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) decreased for the fifth
consecutive month in August to 79.3 - a drop from 80.3 in July and the worst
since December.
The economic outlook is rather grim given the unstable political situation,
the skyrocketing cost of living, higher priced cooking gas, expressway fees
and electricity, and global economic volatility linked to the violence in
Syria, he said.
Predicting reduced consumption and increased household debt in the fourth
quarter, he called on the government to speed up budget spending, stimulate
border trade and tourism.
He said the Centre for Economic and Business Forecasting would lower the
country’s economic growth from 4.0-4.5 percent to 3.5-4.0 percent, probably
late this month.
Thanawat said rubber farmers’ continued protests and the road blockade in
the South have affected several business sectors and the damage was
preliminarily estimated at Bt100-200 million a day.
If the government fails to end the conflict in a month, it would affect the
overall economic growth by 0.1 percent and the protests could possibly
escalate to a political conflict, he said. (MCOT)
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Keynote Speaker announced for Thailand Property Awards Gala Dinner 2013
Ensign Media is pleased to confirm that award-winning
architect and academic Professor Jason Pomeroy will be the keynote speaker
at the Thailand Property Awards 2013, to be held at Centara Grand & Bangkok
Convention Centre at CentralWorld on September 19.
Professor Jason Pomeroy.
“We are delighted that Professor Jason Pomeroy has agreed
to join us,” CEO of event organizer Ensign Media Terry Blackburn said. “He
is an internationally recognized architect and true pioneer in the field of
sustainable building in Asia and beyond. We are very much looking forward to
hearing his thoughts on sustainable building and how developers can benefit
from the introduction of the Green Building Initiative.”
After graduating with distinction from the Canterbury School of Architecture
and Cambridge University, Pomeroy went on to found Pomeroy Studio and
continues to assist with the direction of the studio’s creative output and
research program.
In addition to leading the studio, Pomeroy also lectures and has been
published on a number of occasions. He is the author of Idea House: Future
Tropical Living Today, and the soon to be released, Skycourt and Skygardens:
Greening the Urban Habitat. He is an adjunct professor at the University of
Nottingham, and visiting faculty to a number of other institutions. He also
sits on the editorial board of the Council for Tall Buildings and Urban
Habitat.
The complete shortlist of winners for the Thailand Property Awards can be
viewed www.thailand propertyawards.com
All the final winners and Highly Commended companies and developments will
be announced and presented with coveted Thailand Property Awards 2013
trophies and certificates at the gala dinner on September 19, 2013.Tickets
for the highly anticipated event are still on sale for a limited time only.
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