Last Minute Promotion at Centre Point Sukhuvmit for Studio room

Last Minute Promotion at Centre Point Sukhuvmit for Studio

Promotion price  : THB 2,190+ per night

Last minute promotion – Studio 38 Sq.m.

Book period         : 18 – 31 May 2012

Staying priod       :  May – September 2012

Average room rate 2,900.00 THB

• 1 Queen-size bed
• 1 bathroom (integrated shower and bathtub)
• Dinning and kitchen area

The Sukhumvit area is prestigious and the one most highly sought after by leading Thai families and expatriates alike. Centre Point Sukhumvit is located right in the heart of it. Lying on a tranquil residential area, Centre Point Sukhumvit is a heaven of comfort surrounded by a magnificent lake view with easy access to business areas, shopping centers and international schools. Spaciousness and serenity make Centre Point Sukhumvit an ideal home of executives’ family members.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is considering demolishing the structure of Taksin Station in order to eliminate the current rail bottleneck problem, which has been hindering the service.

According to the BMA’s Traffic and Transportation Department, the opening of the BTS extension line from Wongwian Yai to Bang Wa, which is slated to be fully operational in August 2013, will increase the daily number of commuters by 500,000. In a bid to accommodate the expected increase in passenger number, the department has drawn up a plan on the demolition of Taksin Station, originally designed to be a temporary station, with an aim to resolve the rail bottleneck in the area and speed up the service.

If the plan is executed, a skywalk would be built in place of the station. The 1-kilometer long skywalk is expected to be equipped with a series of escalators, connecting Surasak Station with the Sathorn river pier.

The construction of the skywalk is estimated to cost over 600 million baht. The removal of Taksin Station’s existing structure and the new railway construction are expected to take up another 77 million baht. The plan has been proposed to BMA executives for consideration.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505170024

A gold expert believes that gold prices will continue to drop, saying long-term gold investment is not recommended.

According to Gold Traders Association President Jitti Tangsithpakdi, the precious metal price has declined by 2,000 baht per-baht weight of gold ornaments since the beginning of the year. He further explained that the drop is not that drastic, saying it once, in the third quarter last year, dropped by 2,000 baht in one day.

Mr Jitti suggested long-term speculators to avoid buying gold at this time, as the price is expected to fall further.

He cited that the global gold prices are on a downward trend and could drop to as low as 1,500 dollars, down from the present 1,530 dollars per ounce.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505170021

The Board of Investment of Thailand (BOI) has revealed that 407 investment projects, worth 155 billion baht altogether, have been carried out in Thailand by foreign investors during the first four months of 2012.

Speaking about the overall situation of the foreign direct investment (FDI) during January-May 2012, BOI Investment Adviser Hiranya Sujinai has revealed that more foreigners have expressed their interest to invest in Thailand both in the number of projects and investment value. A total of 407 projects, with an investment value worth 155.49 billion baht, have requested investment promotions from the BOI. The number of investment projects has increased by 21% year-on-year, while there is also a 44% rise in the investment value.

Japan still holds its position as the largest foreign investor in Thailand, with a total of 228 projects, worth 93 billion baht. Other important foreign investors include Malaysia (10.74 billion baht), USA (9.11 billion baht), the Netherlands (9.8 billion baht) and Hong Kong (5.46 billion baht).

SOURCE: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505170020

Despite the worrisome situation of the European economy at present, the Bank of Thailand (BoT) is confident that the Thai economy will not be affected.

Director of the BoT’s Office of Macroeconomics Songtham Pinto stated that the situation of public debt in European countries is still a cause for concern, particularly for the financial market. However, it will not produce any significant impact on Thailand’s economy, given that the country’s export to Europe stands at only 10% of its total export volume.

Meanwhile, it has been estimated that Thai export will see a 9.2% growth this year. Even though the delayed recovery of foreign economies has brought about the current slowdown, the export sector is expected to enjoy a decent growth after the production sector has returned to normal. This will serve as a driving force for the economy and domestic spending in 2013.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505150016

The National Food Institute (NFI) has advised Thai entrepreneurs to invest in the restaurant business in Myanmar as more tourists are expected to flow into the country. BR> The NFI has encouraged Thai entrepreneurs to seek opportunities in the restaurant business in Myanmar to accommodate the increasing number of tourists expected to be traveling to Thailand’s neighbour after it has finally opened its door to the world. Due to its low production quality, lack of technology, and basic infrastructure, the Burmese government has allowed foreign investors to help develop the country’s food industry.

The institute has pointed out that the most appropriate business to invest in Myanmar are SMEs, such as restaurants, tea shops, and distributors of low-priced product such as betel nuts.

The NFI has also found that investment in processed food production and distribution, agricultural products, machinery and technology for agriculture and food processing will benefit from the Burmese government’s policy. Myanmar is currently undergoing a major development in its agricultural policy to encourage the expansion of the public irrigation system, agricultural terrains and foreign investment in the agricultural sector.

Myanmar is also reforming its policies to draw foreign investors into the country; for example, the drafting of a new investment law, which exempts investors from paying income tax for the first 8 years, and allows a 50% corporate income tax reduction for profits derived from exports.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505150009

The Labor Ministry has held a seminar on tackling illegal migrant worker problems, integrating the works of different agencies to prevent the influx of illegal immigrants.

Officials from the committee on illegal alien workers administration and local Department of Employment participated in the seminar to exchange ideas, knowledge and experience to enable them to work together in the same direction.

The committee on illegal alien workers administration, which was newly established on May 3rd, has been working on arresting and preventing illegal immigrants entering the country and tackling local gangs that smuggle in illegal workers.

The committee makes arrests, finds out the nationality of, and deports the illegal immigrants. Over the past 10 days, the committee has captured over 900 illegal workers from 6 employers.

Most immigrants are from Myanmar, followed by Cambodia and Laos.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505150004

During her official visit to Bahrain, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra today paid a visit to Al Fateh Grand Mosque, one of the largest mosques in the world.

At the mosque, the premier was welcomed by representatives of the Ministry of Justice and Islamic Affairs and the mosque’s imam, who gave her a detailed briefing on the site’s history.

Al Fateh Mosque, located in the capital city of Manama, has the capacity to accommodate over 7,000 worshippers each day. Built in the traditional Islamic architectural style, the mosque is fitted with Italian marble floors and an Austrian chandelier.

Its fiberglass dome, weighing over 60 tons, is considered the world’s largest fiberglass dome. Ancient calligraphy writings called Kufic can be seen throughout the mosque. Since 2006, Al Fateh Mosque has also been housing Bahrain’s National Library.

Following the tour of the mosque, Ms Yingluck is scheduled to meet with members of the Thai community in Bahrain.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505140025

Government revenue in the first seven months of the fiscal year 2012 has exceeded its target by 375 billion baht due to economic recovery and the fast rebounding automotive industry.

Director of the Fiscal Policy Office Somchai Sujjapongse said the government’s April 2012 revenue was 139.5 billion baht, higher than forecast by 5.6 billion baht or 4.2%. The increasing revenue in April caused the government’s seven-month revenue, from October 2011–April 2012, to rise above target by 375 billion baht or 4.1%. Most of the extra revenue was from important taxes, such as value-added tax, import duty and corporate and personal income taxes, as well as state enterprises’ earnings paid to the government at a higher amount.

However, Mr. Somchai said the revenue from car and petrol taxes was below the forecast as a result of the flood crisis last year and the government’s extension of the diesel tax cut policy.

Growth in domestic consumption and the import sector, the government’s economic policy and the recovering automotive sector had positively affected the government revenue, the director said.

The Ministry of Finance has expressed confidence that the government revenue for the whole year will be near the target of 1.98 trillion baht despite the continued diesel tax decrease.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505140026

The Department of Land Transport (DLT) has announced that the taxi fare will not yet be raised at this time as the government has agreed to delay the increase of NGV and LPG prices for three months.

Deputy Director General of the DLT Jirut Wisarnjit revealed after a meeting of the National Energy Policy Committee (NEPC), chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Kittiratt Na Ranong, that the prices of NGV and LPG will not be adjusted until the next 3 months. The postponement of the price increase is in accordance with a previous proposal by the Energy Policy Administration Committee (EPAC).

As a result, there will be no need for taxi operators to raise their fares for the time being, and the current starting rate will be kept at 30 baht.

Mr. Jirut added, however, that while the gas prices are being maintained, a study will be conducted by the Energy Research Institute, Chulalongkorn University, to gauge the impact the measure would have on transport operators. He further said that if the impact is significant, price adjustments for both gases will be considered.

Meanwhile, truck companies have voiced their concerns over the insufficient number of NGV stations in the northeastern part of the country and called on the government and PTT Plc to open more service stations in the area. PTT presently has a total of 467 NGV stations across the country and is reportedly planning to raise the number to 500 within this year.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news.php?id=255505140023