The Bongkot gas field in the Gulf of Thailand. (PTTEP)
Energy

Thailand and Cambodia revisit natural gas ambitions in disputed waters

Decades after first agreement, neighbors weigh joint development for energy security

27 February 2024
People walk through a crowded market in Mumbai. India will announce gross domestic product in the October-December quarter on March 1.
Your Week in Asia

Cobra Gold military exercise, South Korean birth rate, India GDP

Your weekly lineup of Asia's biggest business and political events

25 February 2024
Thai telecom operator True has been fielding customer complaints about its network services.
Telecommunication

Thailand's True forecasts profitability less than 2 years after merger

Telco pledges $833m network upgrade amid service complaints

23 February 2024
A group shot of the filmmakers who participated in the fourth "Changing Climate, Changing Lives Film Festival" in Bangkok. The festival opened its awards to international submissions for the first time this year. (Photo by Supakarn Phadungjai for CCCL Film Festival)
Arts

Thai environmental film festival goes international

'Changing Climate, Changing Lives' awards top prize to Japan's 'Miwatari'

23 February 2024
Taiwan's Starlux Airlines has placed an order with Airbus for five A350 freighters and three A330neo wide-body passenger jets, which will be delivered across 2025 and 2026.
Aerospace & Defense Industries

Airbus, Boeing win fresh deals with Asian carriers despite supply woes

Taiwan's Starlux orders first freighters, Thai Airways inks nation's largest order

21 February 2024
Thailand has approved a special tax deduction for companies that switch from traditional to electric trucks. (AFP/Jiji)
Automobiles

Thailand approves EV incentive program for commercial trucks, buses

Tax reduction measures aim to spur demand, reinforce status as regional hub

21 February 2024
Bank of Thailand Gov. Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput speaks to Nikkei Asia in Bangkok on Feb.21. (Photo by Hiroki Endo)
Interview

Bank of Thailand chief denies economy in 'crisis' as PM urges rate cut

Sethaput says monetary easing won't improve tourism spending or export demand

21 February 2024
Police officers inspect burnt out motorcycles at a showroom in Thailand's Pattani province in 2013. Separatists were suspected of setting the fire in a series of arson attacks.
Politics

Thailand military 'spoilers' step on peace prospects in troubled south

Rebels and government sit down for talks on future of bloody ethnic conflict

20 February 2024
Tourists pose for a photo at Wat Arun in Bangkok on Jan. 2. Tourism recovery buoyed economic growth but weak exports still weighed on Thailand. (Photo by Hiroki Endo)
Economy

Thailand's 2023 GDP growth slows to 1.9% on weak exports

2024 growth forecast downgraded after worse-than-expected Q4 figures

19 February 2024
While Thai-made elephant pants cost about $2.80, Chinese knockoffs can be had for half that. (NIKKEI montage/Source photos by Getty and Kosuke Inoue) 
Travel & Leisure

Elephant pants have Thailand debating soft power and copyrights

70% of country's elephant-patterned trousers found to be made in China

18 February 2024
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra sits in a vehicle after being released on parole on Feb. 18 in Bangkok.
Politics

Former Thai PM Thaksin returns home after hospital discharge

Soft terms of confinement raise questions over possible special treatment

18 February 2024
With their demographic dividends petering out, some ASEAN economies are facing the risk of getting old before they get rich. 
Datawatch

Aging Southeast Asia grapples with weak social safety nets

State pensions cover less than 30% of working-age population in some countries

17 February 2024
Food prices at Singapore's popular hawker centers climbed 15% between 2019 and 2023. (Photo by Fumika Sato)
Economy

Singapore, Thailand and more hand out cash to ease inflation pain

SE Asia governments focus on public support while critics warn of fiscal strain

17 February 2024
A bank employee counts Thai baht. The strong U.S. economy has squeezed the value of emerging-market currencies.
Currencies

Thai baht, Malaysian ringgit sink to three-month lows against dollar

Emerging nation central banks balk at rate cuts to defend currencies

16 February 2024
Former Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat reacts to the ruling by Thailand's Constitutional Court ruling on the party's bid to amend a law against insulting the monarchy.
Politics

Thailand's Move Forward shifts focus from royal reform to military

Main opposition party hopes to avoid dissolution after lese-majeste ruling

15 February 2024
A waxwork-like effigy of the late heroin warlord Khun Sa in his parlor -- now part of a museum in his honor -- in the Thai town of Thoed Thai, near the border with Myanmar. (Photo by William Mellor)
14 February 2024
German alternative meat startup Infinite Roots received an investment from Thailand's Betagro Group. (Screenshot of Infinite Roots' website)
Food & Beverage

Thailand's Betagro invests in German fungi-based meat startup

Food group takes aim at Asia's growing market for alternative protein

14 February 2024
Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra returns from exile at Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok on Aug. 22, 2023.
Politics

Thailand's former PM Thaksin granted special parole

New rule on age and illness sets up release from police hospital in coming days

13 February 2024
Great Wall Motor is building electric vehicles in Thailand. (Photo by Kenya Akama)
Economy

Thai investment applications hit 5-year high, led by Chinese money

FDI jumped 72% in 2023 as U.S.-China frictions persist

9 February 2024
Chairman Ho Kwon Ping says a corporate reshuffle is necessary to unlock the Banyan Group's value. (Photo by Hiroki Endo)
Property

Singapore's Banyan eager to split hotel, property units, chairman says

Hospitality group puts 'high priority' on restructuring as shares underperform

8 February 2024
Bank of Thailand Gov. Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput has been under pressure from the prime minister to cut interest rates.
Economy

Thai central bank stands pat despite rate cut pressure from PM

Latest monetary policy decision in line with economists' expectations

7 February 2024
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, right, and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet hold a signing ceremony at Government House in Bangkok on Feb. 7. (Photo by Hiroki Endo) 
International relations

Thailand and Cambodia agree to talks on disputed, energy-rich waters

PMs Srettha and Manet eye special border economic zones amid rights concerns

7 February 2024
Thailand, which had Asia's worst-performing market last year, has faced calls to raise the standard of listed companies and prevent corporate scandals.
Markets

Thai SEC tightens listing rules, criteria for marking troubled stocks

Regulator also considers measures to curb high-frequency trading

6 February 2024
Thai marines participate in an amphibious assault exercise as part of the Cobra Gold 2023 joint military exercises at a military base in Chonburi province.
Defense

Thailand faces bitter battle over downsizing powerful military

Armed forces' top brass maneuver to call shots even after shift to civilian rule

6 February 2024
Thailand's Sihasak Phuangketkeow, now the country's vice foreign minister, attends a meeting in Naypyitaw in this 2014 file photo.
Myanmar Crisis

Thailand to intensify efforts to resolve Myanmar crisis

Vice foreign minister Sihasak sees cross-border aid initiative in place this month

6 February 2024