Bangkok Business Brief - Volume 1, Issue 2 - Jan. 2012

1. www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
BANGKOK BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 1
BUSINESS BRIEF
Vol. No. 1, Issue No. 2 January 2012
www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
3 Years and Counting Down to URGENT! British
expats see Page 12
the AEC: Will Thailand Be Ready? NOW!
B D O
ing, the time to lay the ground- for many ai companies, there is from Asean Secretary-General
As Asean nations gear up for the work for regional cooperation, and a danger that when 2015 arrives, Surin Pitsuwan, who advised that
formal establishment of the Asean even expansion, is now. Various certain sectors of the economy will
the ai government, in the wake
Economic Community (AEC) in industries have begun preparing be le behind and lose out to other
of this year’s ooding crisis, realize
2015, both the public and private for regional economic integration Asean countries and companies the importance of the AEC and to
sectors in ailand are realizing and have made progress, while that are better prepared. attempt to boost con dence in the
that with just three years remain- others remain skeptical and are ai economy, both regionally and
taking a much more deliberate ap- e urgency of the situation was around the world. Indeed, ai-
Inside proach. While this may be prudent indicated recently by comments Story continues on Page 20.
General Interest 2 M E AEC
Economy 3 S S
Government 4
Finance/Investment 5 S M C E I
E E G
Production 6 P B R D E
Infrastructure/Logistics 7
Retail/Services 8 external economic relations
IT/Comms 9 Integration (IAI)
Tourism 10 global supply networks
Real Estate 11
Environment/CSR 12
Business Organizations 13
e Chambers 14
e Calendar 22
Human Resource Development Research and Development

2. 2 BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
To read the full article of a story brief,
Briefs goo.gl/bH6PF
...added that the company had
set aside a signi cant investment
enter the short code at the end of budget of Bt200 million to Bt300
million for overseas expansion.
the story into your browser: Full story at http://goo.gl/bH6PF
General Interest proposed initiative to construct natural disasters, says the ai- ailand will ask Japan’s govern-
a 100-kilometretunnel to prevent land Business Council for Sustain- ment “and other international de-
future ooding in and around the able Development (TBCSD). velopment partners” to help assess
capital will carry a he y price tag, the impact of planned hydropower
it is worth the cost, say under- TBCSD chairman Prasert Bun-
http://goo.gl/ozbNM
ground tunnelling system ana- sumpun said companies have a joint statement today. Vietnam
Anti-graft alliance lysts. learned from the country’s worst earlier recommended a 10-year
ood in ve decades the signi -
vows to keep close cant risks to their business. projects.
watch major city relies solely on the
canal. e advantage of under- “Business operators have only fo- Opposition to the Xayaburi dam
ground tunnels is they don’t re- cused on nancial performance may force...
watchdog groups, yesterday quire any additional land,” said and gaining market share. ey Full story at http://goo.gl/N1Rxd
launched the “Clean ailand Zaw Zaw Aye, secretary-general of overlooked...
DIY” campaign to monitor the the World Tunnel Congress 2012 Full story at http://goo.gl/wzks0 ‘Only minor impact’
government’s spending of Bt800 Organising Committee. “For ex-
Laos to Delay on European market
billion earmarked for post- ood ample, if the damage from ood- In spite of some concern over the
recovery e orts. ing is 1 trillion dollars, an under- Mekong River Dam, ooding in ailand and the euro-
ground tunnel system could... Agrees to Further zone debt crisis, more traders and
Full story at http://goo.gl/k60NS tourists from the European Union
said the group is inviting people Studies will go to ailand next year, ac-
to join its campaign for 2012 to Business council Laos agreed to delay construction cording to a ai envoy
watch post- ood recovery e orts, advises disaster of a $3.7 billion hydropower dam
which the government has said... plans “ e inundation has had a minor
Full story at http://goo.gl/C8if0 study concerns among neigh- impact on the number of tourists
ai businesses should incorpo- boring countries that the project and very little on trade or invest-
Tunnel analysts rate natural disaster risks in their would disrupt sheries and rice ment. Tourists and investors still
push for study risk management plans and the production downstream. have high con dence to visit and
Despite the high price tag, the plan government should empower a keep doing business with...
will be worthwhile – Although a single agency to take charge of Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Full story at http://goo.gl/cN7lh
Bangkok Business Brief BANGKOK
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3. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 3
General Inter
est liam Shakespea
re
Sponsored by.
.. Nature and life in JuliusCaesar.
Use the QR Code reader in your seasons of the
are cyclical _
year, life and dea
the
the phases of the th,
smartphone to see all the stories http://goo.gl/o
zbNM Caught up in dai moon, the tides.
ly details, we eas
Asia stands to ily forget that
the business wo
in a certain category. gain from W has cycles, too.
We
with the econom are all familiar
rld
est ic business cyc
le
Economy build the country, Commerce
said on Wednesday.
http://goo.gl/LjBqz
said the government will imple-
BoT: Europe crisis ment policies focusing on dis-
tribution of income, increasing
won’t hurt economy prices of agricultural products
e continuing nancial crisis in and raising of daily minimum
Europe is causing uncertainty but wage of workers.
it will not have much impact on
the ai economy, a central bank The government will intervene
o cial said Tuesday. in the market to ensure that
prices of agricultural goods are
- reasonably high, particularly...
roeconomics director Songtham Full story at http://goo.gl/1m0Dj
Pinto said the BoT has been keep-
ing a close watch on the situation. Export growth to
It would have only a minimal af- narrow to single
fect on the overall economy of digits next year
ailand.
Exports next year are expected to
He said the central bank’s growth grow at a moderate single-digit
projection of 4.8 per cent for next pace as the unresolved world
year was based on the hypothesis economy erodes consumption,
that Europe’s economy was not so says the Export-Import Bank of
good but there was no sign that ailand (Exim Bank).
the situation was deteriorating
further. Bank president Kanit Sukontha-
man said ai exports would ex-
pand slowly in 2012 compared
with this year’s 17-18% growth of
Full story at http://goo.gl/9MWnQ US$22.8 billion.
Single world Exim Bank is predicting a con-
currency ‘inevitable’ traction in global demand because
of lingering economic woes in the
winning Canadian economist, is large economies, which make up
con dent the 13-year-old Euro- 30% of the ai export market.
pean monetary union will survive
and has rea rmed his wish for a
universal currency. whether China’s government may
have tried to...
Speaking yesterday in Bangkok, Full story at http://goo.gl/kJZPV
he predicted European leaders will
address the euro zone’s embattled Asia Faces ‘Much
economies with important chang- Greater’ Risks on
es in the economic bloc. Global Slowdown,
ADB Says
amending the existing scal treaty Asian economies are facing “much
and making troubled economies greater downside risks” now be-
adopt austerity measures. cause of the possibility of a reces-
sion in the U.S. and Europe and
“It is di cult if not impossible to the threat of destabilizing capital
go back in the current crisis, and ows, the Asian Development
going forward requires a big... Bank said.
Full story at http://goo.gl/ZkIky
e biggest challenge for policy
Strong economic makers in emerging East Asian
growth again nations is to safeguard growth
predicted in 2012 against the threat of another global
Gross domestic product is ex- lender said in its Asia Economic
pected to grow in 2012 by about
seven per cent on the back of over the world economy means...
government investment to re- Full story at http://goo.gl/TVkMM

4. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
To read the full article of a story brief,
Briefs goo.gl/bH6PF
...added that the company had
set aside a signi cant investment
enter the short code at the end of budget of Bt200 million to Bt300
million for overseas expansion.
the story into your browser: Full story at http://goo.gl/bH6PF
Government JSCCIB wants songkroh, could a ect the minis- sures are available at the moment.
try’s e orts to push forward mega-
Government change to Article project developments to serve the
government’s policy, a source says. import duties for machinery and
e Joint Standing Committee on raw materials come attached with
Sponsoredhttp://goo.gl/EIbH6
by TISCO Financial Commerce, Industry and Banking During the past four months the conditions regarding the type of
Govt vows to (JSCCIB) suggested the govern- ministry has shown little progress machinery and the exemption pe-
ment rapidly amend Article 190 of on mega-projects promised by the riod. Also, the investment...
protect industry the charter to allow state o ces to Pheu ai Party during the gener- Full story at http://goo.gl/ZyDYr
Amid high concerns over recur- freely deal with foreign countries. al-election campaign, including 10
mass-transit routes, the dual-track Kittiratt: B300
Payungsak Chartsuthipol, chair- project, and high-speed rail. e daily wage plan
man of the Federation of ai ministry is key to bringing such still on
Ranong vowed to protect indus- Industries, said on Wednesday projects on stream, which would e government’s plan to increase
trial and trading areas under the that JSCCIB had set up a working lead to massive investment in... the labour minimum wage to 300
soon-to-be launched master plan panel to coordinate with the gov- Full story at http://goo.gl/bs1ri baht per day from April 1 next year
on water management. ernment, asking it to quickly move will still be carried out despite the
to change the Article 190. JSCCIB Tax measures to ood which has severely a ected
e Cabinet will today convene thought the article is a major... subsidise industries the economy and the value-added
a special meeting to consider a Full story at http://goo.gl/DBiRf A er months of inundation, the tax (VAT) will not be increased
post- ood reconstruction bud- government has announced that from the current rate of 7 per cent,
get, which Kittiratt hinted would Transport Ministry most factories in ooded industri-
exceed Bt40 billion if the Cabinet clashes ‘slow al estates should be able to resume Ranong said on Sunday.
gave the green light to all the proj- projects’ operation early next year.
ects being considered at the meet- He said that despite the ood situ-
ing. e budget ceiling for recon- e reported management con- To ensure this will take place, the ation, the increase in the coun-
struction is said to be about Bt120 - rst set of tax measures have re- try’s exports during the rst eight
billion. ter Sukampol Suwannathat and cently been announced for the months was as high as 24 per cent,
Kittiratt said the government... his two deputy ministers, Chatt Board of Investment-promoted and the overall increase in...
Full story at http://goo.gl/CrRYW Kuldilokeand Kittisakdi Hatha- projects. Let’s nd out what mea- Full story at http://goo.gl/RklBA

5. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012
General Inter
est liam Shakespea
re
Sponsored by.
.. Nature and life in JuliusCaesar.
Use the QR Code reader in your seasons of the
are cyclical _
the
SECURITY
year, life and dea
the phases of the th,
smartphone to see all the stories http://goo.gl/o
zbNM Caught up in dai moon, the tides.
ly details, we eas
Asia stands to ily forget that
the business wo
in a certain category. gain from W has cycles, too. rld
INVESTIGATIONS
We
est with the econom are all familiar
ic business cyc
le
Finance / Investment the Asean Economic Community
in 2015 because of problemswith
the country’s fundamentals and
regulations, and a joint govern- ฀ ฀
ment-private-sector committee ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀
http://goo.gl/wKeiJ
should be set up quickly to imple-
ment a cross-border payment sys- ฀ ฀ ฀
More foreign fund tem, banks executives said. ฀฀ ฀ ฀
flow next year ฀ ฀
Foreign investors will return to Anuchit Anuchitanukul, senior
ailand next year because the executive vice president of Krung ฀ ฀
Stock Exchange of ailand (SET) ai Bank, noted that the current ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀
is still attractive, ianthip Supan- e-payment systems served only lo-
cals, unlike foreign banks, because
Research Institute, said on Tues- of the regulations and business lo-
day. gistics.
ai capital market’s price to earn- “We still see messengers riding
ing (P/E) ratio of ai shares is motorcycles to collect cheques and
lower than that of the US stock invoices instead of using electron-
market, while their dividend pay- ic payment systems,” he said. “ is
ment rates are higher. In addition, indicates that the payment system
the stock market in Europe has in ailand will not be ready once
yet to recover and therefore it is the AEC arrives.”...
expected that more foreign fund Full story at http://goo.gl/cBl5T
will ow into the SET in 2012, said
SME: Thai hub
planned to back Tel: +66 878842122 Info: aaron@leboutilliergroup.com
Foreign investors made total net stakes from Europe www.leboutilliergroup.com
sales of 17 billion baht over the
rst eleven months of the year, but in Asean
they returned to make net pur- Several European small and me-
chase of 9.3 billion baht in Decem- dium-sized enterprises are look-
ber. is was a sign showing that... ing into making new investments
Full story at http://goo.gl/QrEUw in Asean, particularly ailand, as
the region is an emerging market
Euro crisis expected with great opportunities for busi-
to spur inflows ness growth.
-
ce expects foreign capital to ow To facilitate this, the European
into ailand’s bond market be- Commission has budgeted €2 mil-
cause of the protracted sovereign lion (Bt16 million) for the new %DNHU 7LOO RUSRUDWH $GYLVRU
debt crisis in Europe. Bangkok-based European-Ase-
an Business Centre in ailand
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Chakkrit Parapuntakul, director- (EABC).
general of the o ce, said yesterday 2XU 6HUYLFHV
that Standard Poor’s, an inter- Freya Lemcke (Eurochambres) ‡ 13/ 'LVSRVDO DQG $FTXLVLWLRQ
national rating agency, would fur-
ther downgrade the creditworthi- Union from various sectors would ‡ 'HEW 5HVWUXFWXULQJ 7XUQDURXQG
ness of many countries in Europe. like to start businesses in the... ‡ )XQG 5DLVLQJ
Full story at http://goo.gl/3wJKS ‡ 9DOXDWLRQ 5HSRUWV
Investors will not have opportuni-
ties to deal in Europe or the Unit- Asia Surviving ‡0 $
ed States, he said. Europe ‘Stress Test’ ‡ DVK DQG 3HUIRUPDQFH 0RQLWRULQJ $FFRXQWLQJ
Boosts Case for 'XH 'LOLJHQFH
ailand, among other countries
in this region, stands to gain from Upgrade
the next wave of capital ows. Asian economies are withstanding ,I RX UHTXLUH DQ RI WKHVH VHUYLFHV
Europe’s debt crisis so well that SOHDVH IHHO IUHH WR FRQWDFW WKH 3DUWQHUV
Foreign investors have plenty of some investors are positioning for XQGRQJ 7KDQWLYLUDPDQRQ $PQDM 0XQJNRUQSXQ
room to expand in the ai bond credit-rating upgrades in the region.
market, as they... RU :DUZLFN .QHDOH RQ RU
Full story at http://goo.gl/T3hpZ LQTXLULHV#EDNHUWLOOWKDLODQGFRP
watching the trading in (Asian
New rules needed credit-default) swaps, which pro-
to get e-payment tect against non-payment, and ZZZEDNHUWLOOWKDLODQGFRP
e e-payment system of ai how Asia copes with capital...
banks is unlikely to be ready for Full story at http://goo.gl/jskTV

7. 6 BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
To read the full article of a story brief,
Briefs goo.gl/bH6PF
...added that the company had
set aside a signi cant investment
enter the short code at the end of budget of Bt200 million to Bt300
million for overseas expansion.
the story into your browser: Full story at http://goo.gl/bH6PF
Production Amata sees post- Ltd, the world leader in hard-disk said that aside from the construc-
drives (HDDs) and storage solu- tion of more robust ood barri-
flood boom tions, has released the gures for ers at the estates as a short-term
11% rise in demand projected its new read/write-head factory in measure, investors are demanding
next year – Amata Corporation a water master plan for long-term
http://goo.gl/UrVpE
expects a windfall from the oods, security.
Better safe increasing its target land sales to Costing 1 billion baht for both
2,000 rai next year, up from 1,800 construction and equipment, the “ e plan is a priority to ensure
than sorry rai, on demand from factories 29,800-square-metre building will quick recovery in the manufac-
e ood crisis has highlighted wanting to escape ooded estates. start operations next February. turing sector,” said Kobkarn Wat-
the desirability of diversifying op- tanav-rangkul, chairwoman of
erations across multiple locations. Viboon Kromadit, Amata’s chief e new plant will create several Toshiba ailand and Bangkadi
operating o cer, is con dent the thousand new jobs once it... Industrial Park – one of seven in-
e unexpectedly huge scale of company can increase industrial Full story at http://goo.gl/yk9Wk undated industrial estates.
the ongoing ood crisis has driven land sales next year, pumping its Failure to develop
home the need for companies to revenue to 5 billion baht, up from “ ough it may require seven to
diversify their operations base af- a previous target of 4 billion. water plan eight years to implement, the plan
ter many saw their entire produc- not an option: is a must; there are fears that this...
tion process shut down. With seven industrial estates in manufacturers Full story at http://goo.gl/KUYkJ
Ayutthaya and Pathum ani in-
Total damage has yet to be gured, undated, causing massive damage Given the magnitude of the ood- Quality stamp
but already the potential price tag to the auto and electronics indus- in icted losses to manufacturers for products
is sending shivers down the spine tries, Amata has been contacted both small and large, ailand’s ai products will be promoted
of companies that had their entire by several factories that are ready industrial competitiveness can with a “ ailand Trust Quality
operation in a single location or to move... only be maintained if a compre-
even based in one country. Full story at http://goo.gl/UMKWR hensive water-management mas- Promotion Department (DEP).
ter plan is developed, panellists at Research shows ai products are
“Yes, we’ve learned a lesson from Seagate completes a seminar said. known for their diversi cation
this natural disaster. We thought... B1bn Korat factory and neat design, so the DEP will...
Full story at http://goo.gl/eBZDB Seagate Technology ( ailand) ree industrial-estate operators Full story at http://goo.gl/Mdw2B
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8. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012
General Inter
Use the QR Code reader in your
Sponsored by.
est
..
liam Shakespea
seasons of the
re ,Kt E / 'd Dz WKW
Nature and life in JuliusCaesar.
are cyclical _
the
year, life and dea
the phases of the th,
smartphone to see all the stories http://goo.gl/o
Asia stands to
zbNM
ily forget that TO WANT dK K d, d,/E'^
Caught up in dai moon, the tides.
ly details, we eas
the business wo
in a certain category. gain from W has cycles, too.
We
with the econom are all familiar
rld
est
/ t Ed d,D dK K
ic business cyc
le
Infrastructure/Logistics selves in response to rising compe-
tition when the Asean community
becomes a single market, e ective
in 2015. ...DEVELOP YOUR LEADERSHIP SKILLS
Chula Sukmanop, inspector-gen-
IATA urges single
said that transportation among
airport for Bangkok Asean countries would become
e International Air Travel As- more convenient a er Asean be- ^ / Z .
sociation (IATA) has called on the comes a single market.
government to continue expand- d
ing Suvarnabhumi Airport rather ailand would also open its road
than renovating ooded Don routes, covering a total length of
more than 4,000 kilometres, in-
very costly, noting |that having cluding railways, for other Asean
dual airports does |not attract ei- countries. erefore, ai logistics K
ther airlines or tourists. rms need to increase their...
Full story at http://goo.gl/IWWq0
MWA using
president for safety, operations
and infrastructure at the IATA, German technology K
to accelerate water
media day in Switzerland last
week that the government should purification process
carefully consider the cost before
association believes the money Solvox technology from Germa-
would be better spent on expand- ny-based Linde to accelerate the
ing and developing Suvarnabhumi puri cation of contaminated ood
Airport, which would provide... water and ensure the good quality
Full story at http://goo.gl/9OoP8 of tap water distributed in Bang-
kok and nearby provinces.
Some Asian cities
urged to fund ai Industrial Gases (TIG), a
infrastructure with subsidiary of Linde, is committed
to providing liquid oxygen used in
municipal bonds the treatment process in addition
Asian local governments search- to the installation of a puri cation
ing for funds to pay for a slew of system worth Bt10 million to the
infrastructure projects may need
to contemplate municipal bonds %DNHU 7LOO 0DQDJHPHQW
as an alternative funding source,
according to a new report by Stan- yesterday said tap water to date
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dard Poor’s Ratings Services. was still clean and safe for daily
use. However, the amount of water
e report discusses some of the contaminated a er two months of :H SURYLGH
region’s infrastructure needs, as ooding is enormous, and the... ‡ 2XWVRXUFHG DFFRXQWLQJ VHUYLFHV
well as the key challenges facing Full story at http://goo.gl/IuuBK
Asia’s policymakers as they at- ‡ 1HZ FRPSDQ VWUXFWXULQJ DQG IRUPDWLRQ
tempt to nd funding solutions Ch Karnchang gears ‡ RPSDQ UHVWUXFWXULQJ
and address long-standing inves- up for billions’ of
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bond markets. It also examines ‡ 2XWVRXUFHG SDUROO VHUYLFHV
what needs to be done to kick- Ch Karnchang, the country’s
start the region’s municipal markets. second-largest construction com- ,I RX UHTXLUH DQ RI WKHVH VHUYLFHV
pany, is ready to take on Bt50 bil- SOHDVH IHHO IUHH WR FRQWDFW WKH 3DUWQHUV
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tries in emerging Asia to contem- RQ RU
plate new funding solutions... Chief executive o cer Plew LQTXLULHV#EDNHUWLOOWKDLODQGFRP
Full story at http://goo.gl/exy4L Trivisvavet said yesterday that
Logistics firms told a er all up, old infrastructure
mopped
ood waters have been
to shape up before such as roads would need to be
AEC repaired while new infrastruc- ZZZEDNHUWLOOWKDLODQGFRP
ai logistics services providers ture, such as roads, buildings...
have been advised to adjust them- Full story at http://goo.gl/vfvIl

10. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
To read the full article of a story brief,
Briefs goo.gl/bH6PF
...added that the company had
set aside a signi cant investment
enter the short code at the end of budget of Bt200 million to Bt300
million for overseas expansion.
the story into your browser: Full story at http://goo.gl/bH6PF
Retail/Services Thais’ average president for marketing and certainty, as the water is draining
public relations at Central Food away only very slowly and has still
online spending at Retail, which operates Tops Su- not fully receded in some areas,”
Online shoppers in ailand are said the company would o cially in a statement today. “It therefore
http://goo.gl/QyrTE
sticking to the same online holiday launch its “Top Shop Online” divi- remains di cult to estimate losses
Thai AirAsia delays shopping budget theyhalf for them-
selves last year, with
set
planning
sion next year. Its e-division is al-
ready in operation on a trial basis
in the worst a ected industrial ar-
eas around Bangkok.”
IPO to spend the same amount as they and has received good customer
AirAsia insisted yesterday that the did in 2010, according to the Visa feedback. Swiss Re Ltd., the world’s second-
proposed initial public o ering of Holiday Season Online Shopping biggest reinsurer, earlier this week
its ai a liate was still on track, Study. Under this new marketing strat- estimated its claims from the
though with an apparent shi to egy, Phattaraporn said the compa- oods at $600 million and said it
the rst quarter of next year in- e study revealed that 33 per cent ny would also launch mobile ap- expects a total insured market...
stead of this month. of respondents plan to set aside a plications for this service next year Full story at http://goo.gl/q9Irf
higher online holiday shopping and believes these channels will...
Tony Fernandes, the CEO of budget this year, while 18 percent Full story at http://goo.gl/O2EHH
Southeast Asia’s biggest low-cost said they would spend... earnings take a hit
carrier, said the planned IPO of Full story at http://goo.gl/gz3lX Munich Re Expects Crisis management and social-
ai AirAsia (TAA) and that of Thai Flood Claims media solutions will be the two
Jakarta-based o shoot AirAsia Retailers eye key issues of interest to businesses
Indonesia (AAI) were both on online distribution next year because of the high level
schedule with regard to due dili- channels Million Euros of uncertainty over the economy,
gence and regulatory approval. anks to the development of mo- politics and natural disasters.
bile technology, a rising number reinsurer, estimates its net claims
“ ai AirAsia is submitting its ap- of Internet users and more con- from the ooding in ailand at Danai Chanchaochai, chief execu-
plication to regulators for market dence in online payment, many about 500 million euros ($671 tive o cer of DC Consultants and
listing early in the rst quarter of leading retailers are planning to million) before taxes.
2012,” he said, with AAI to... enter the e-business eld next year. it was imperative for ailand to...
Full story at http://goo.gl/0raoW Phattaraporn Phenpraphat, vice- e estimate “is still subject to un- Full story at http://goo.gl/2eEOh
Business affected D /
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Business Continuity Planning | Outsourcing | Software

11. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012
General Inter
est liam Shakespea
re
Sponsored by.
.. Nature and life in JuliusCaesar.
Use the QR Code reader in your seasons of the
are cyclical _
year, life and dea
the
the phases of the th,
smartphone to see all the stories http://goo.gl/o
zbNM Caught up in dai moon, the tides.
ly details, we eas
Asia stands to ily forget that
the business wo
in a certain category. gain from W has cycles, too.
We
with the econom are all familiar
rld
est ic business cyc
le
IT / Comms its IT competitiveness ranking,
but the country’s PC so ware pi-
racy rate is fast declining, says a
new report by the Economist In-
telligence Unit.
Firms embrace ailand’s IT competitiveness
ranking slipped to 50th in this
social media year’s IT Competitiveness Index,
Global survey says more compa- from 49th two years ago. Combined
nies bank on new-media tools to Security Solutions
deliver information to employees e Business So ware Alliance
(BSA), which sponsored the re- for the workplace
A majority of companies world- port, said blame falls mainly on...
wide say they are becoming more Full story at http://goo.gl/R5y6q
knowledgeable about the use of
social-media tools to connect NBTC approves Securitas Security Services knows well that all workplaces need to be monitored
with and keep their workforces Xe[ gifkZk[% N`k_ fli :fdY`e[ JZli`kp Jfclk`fej# n f i X iXe^ f] k_ cXkjk
informed. cellular broadband Access Control Systems such as biometrics entry systems and CCTV supported by
fli Dfe`kfi`e^ :eki Xe[ fli DfY`c GXkifcj%
In fact, more than two-thirds of service
companies surveyed by global $ Surveillance CCTV systems
professional services company Tele-communications Commis- $ Access Control - Biometrics wireless systems
Towers Watson, plan to increase sion has given approval to cellular $ Expert installation after sales service warranty
their use of social-media tools operators to test fourth-genera- Securitas Thailand $ 24/7 Remote monitoring by multilingual
over the next 12 months though tion cellular broadband service on professionals
Email: sales.info@securitas.co.th
many question their... the 2.3-gigahertz and 1,800-mega- Telephone: 02 402 8258
$ Establishment of an anti fraud/crime culture
Full story at http://goo.gl/7p1wn hertz frequencies. www.securitas-thailand.com $ Fhej[Yj fhef[hjo ijW Yb_[dji
EGA plans master BANGKOK BANG PA-IN CHIANG MAI EASTERN SEABOARD HUA HIN LAEM CHABANG
BANGKOK BANG PA-IN CHIANG MAI EASTERN SEABOARD HUA HIN LAEM CHABANG
centre for business MAPTAPHUT PATTAYA PHUKET SAMUI UDON THANI
MAPTAPHUT PATTAYA PHUKET SAMUI UDON THANI
continuity watchdog had approved a joint
application by Advanced Info Ser-
e government plans to set up a vice (AIS) and TOT to o er Long
state data centre to support busi- Term Evolution (LTE) technol-
ness continuity during natural di- ogy 4G service on TOT’s 2.3GHz
sasters and political turmoil, says spectrum on a trial basis. e state
the Electronic Government Agen-
cy (EGA). - www.siamwheels.com
trum in the trial.
“In early January, the EGA will
submit a proposal to seek cabinet AIS and TOT will jointly...
approval for the data centre proj- Full story at http://goo.gl/XOzbQ
ect,” said director Sak Segknoon-
thod. Survey: Cloud
security emerging
“ e centre will consolidate all concern among
state agency data centres into a
single unit” to eliminate redun- users
dancy. If we want any data now, we Companies in South Asia are
have to hop on and o in di erent con dently wading into cloud
places instead of taking essential computing, but they admit com-
data from a single place.” plicated operational security is
a top concern, according to the
e agency will assess the e cien- 2011 state of cloud survey.
cy of government data centres and
integrate related ones. e central Conducted by the leading data
data centre will be sited in a prov- security rm Symantec, the sur-
ince such as Chon Buri to shield vey found 84% of 1,100 organ-
it from... isations surveyed in ailand,
Full story at http://goo.gl/nptTm
Vietnam, Philippines and India
Thailand’s IT are con dent about shi ing to
ranking slips a notch cloud computing _ the use of ap-
CAT Telecom and True Corp plications hosted online.
group next week will discuss
amending their contracts for joint
ailand has slipped one spot in Full story at http://goo.gl/mFizU

12. 10 BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
To read the full article of a story brief,
Briefs goo.gl/bH6PF
...added that the company had
set aside a signi cant investment
enter the short code at the end of budget of Bt200 million to Bt300
million for overseas expansion.
the story into your browser: Full story at http://goo.gl/bH6PF
Tourism TAT hungry for have a functioning nurse room for as visitors return to the Kingdom
emergency rst aid, as it is a re- a er delaying trips because of the
Chinese market quirement of the Hotel Act. ooding crisis.
e Tourism Authority of ai-
land (TAT) plans to restore the “Even genuinely registered op-
Chinese market a er the main- erators should not receive a li- of Pullman Bangkok King Power
New TAT campaign land li ed its travel warning last cence extension if they don’t have Hotel, said that not only foreign
week. a nurse room,” THA president tourists, but also business travel-
aimed at getting Prakit Chinamourphong said yes- lers and ais would require the
off on the right - terday. use of hotels for meetings and
foot with foreign ty governor for Asia and the South events.
Paci c, said the agency will sup- e association has submitted
arrivals port half of the marketing cam-
e Tourism Authority of ai- paign cost for travel agents who Yongyuth Wichaidit for the gov- put their plans to travel to ai-
land (TAT) will introduce “ ai- join the project to promote 10 ernment to continue to help up- land on hold during the ooding
land Welcomes the World”, its new charter ights from Chinese prov- grade hotel standards and safety
campaign aimed at impressing inces that have never had ights through the Hotel Act. but they are expected to...
international travellers from their to ailand such as Shanxi Sheng, Full story at http://goo.gl/71iFh
rst step inside the country. Chongqing, Hebei, and Henan. e requirement for a nurse room
in every hotel was... Despite more rivals,
“ ailand is now rehabilitating it- Full story at http://goo.gl/ySo1u Full story at http://goo.gl/rpBUq TCEB confident of
self in the wake of massive ood-
THA presses govt Kingdom set for winning
ing, so we must make a strong
impression on tourists by giving to enforce ‘nurse post-flood tourism Although the countries bidding
them a warm welcome as soon as room’ requirement rebound to host the World Expo 2020 have
they arrive,” said governor Sura- grown from two to ve, the ai-
phon Svetasreni. in all hotels Representatives of both the private land Convention and Exhibition
e ai Hotels Association is and public sectors are predicting Bureau (TCEB) is con dent that
e 20-million-baht campaign,... that the tourism industry will see Ayutthaya remains the top...
Full story at http://goo.gl/8Yhsc ensure that all registered hotels strong growth in the coming year Full story at http://goo.gl/sgOS0

13. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 11
General Inter
est liam Shakespea
re
Sponsored by.
.. Nature and life in JuliusCaesar.
Use the QR Code reader in your seasons of the
are cyclical _
year, life and dea
the
the phases of the th,
smartphone to see all the stories http://goo.gl/o
zbNM Caught up in dai moon, the tides.
ly details, we eas
Asia stands to ily forget that
the business wo
in a certain category. gain from W has cycles, too.
We
with the econom are all familiar
rld
est ic business cyc
le
Real Estate Anupong wins top
award
e listed developer Asian Prop-
erty Development Plc (AP) won
Best A ordable Condo Develop-
ment (Bangkok) for its project
Rhythm Ratchada while its CEO
lease term proposed Anupong Asavabhokhin won Real
An extension of the current maxi- Estate Personality of the Year in
mum lease term to 90 years from ailand Property Awards 2011.
30 years would help to address
problems of ai nominees hold-
ing property ownership for for-
eigners while more than doubling e Residences at e St. Regis
property values and generating Bangkok was the winner of three ,
more tax revenue. awards at yesterday’s event in-
cluding Best Condo Development t
e inability to own land in ai- ailand, Best Luxury Condo De-
land and an unattractive maxi- velopment (Bangkok) and Best... W
mum lease term of 30 years for a Full story at http://goo.gl/BC2bF
property prompt some foreigners ^
to appoint ai nominees to hold Mortgage rethink
the property for them. is year’s ood crisis will spark a ,
sea change in home loan criteria ^ W ^
ey may also set up a rm to hold d
the property, which o en results e mortgage sector will likely /
in a dispute between the foreign- change signi cantly following the
ers and their ai nominees. ood crisis as banks readjust their
debt approval criteria.
Sorachon Boonsong, a partner in
the international law rm Baker Project location, appraisal prices,
home insurance and the property’s
does not bene t the country, as... business strategy will all be scruti-
Full story at http://goo.gl/X2Ryw nised more closely.
GH Bank sets Location has normally been the
flat growth for main factor in a property project,
2012 loans corresponding positively to the
cost estimate and in turn a ecting
Government Housing Bank (GH banks’ credit line approvals. De-
Bank) expects zero growth next velopers have favoured areas out-
year due to the impact of the side Bangkok proper but...
oods. Full story at http://goo.gl/F5a26
President Worawit Chailim- Land prices rise
pamontri said GH Bank has set a sharply after floods
2012 loan target of 99 billion baht,Land prices in Bangkok’s inner
on a par with this year’s goal, as areas such as Siam Square have
the deluge in recent months will surged dramatically to Bt1.4 mil-
tame the pace of housing de- lion per square wah(4 square
mand. metres) in the a ermath of the
severe oods that hit many areas,
e ood crisis has not only hit according to the latest survey of
homebuyers in the pocketbook the Agency for Real Estate A airs
but also caused them to delay their (AREA), an independent proper-
decisions. ty-consulting rm.
“People who want to buy a new e areas along Sukhumvit Road,
home right now are mostly delay- where Siam Paragon Shopping
ing their decisions to reconsider,” Complex and Siam Square are
located, have seen rates shoot
review the location to make sure it up to as high as Bt1.4 million
is safe from ooding.” per square wah, or Bt560 million
per rai, a 17-per-cent surge from
He believes next year’s rst quar- Bt1.2 million per square wah last
ter could be an opportunity for... year. e Siam Square area also...
Full story at http://goo.gl/L1T33 Full story at http://goo.gl/ctvxg

14. 12 BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
To read the full article of a story brief,
Briefs goo.gl/bH6PF
...added that the company had
set aside a signi cant investment
enter the short code at the end of budget of Bt200 million to Bt300
million for overseas expansion.
the story into your browser: Full story at http://goo.gl/bH6PF
Environment / CSR China and Asean for its active role in bolstering the 25 per cent within 10 years, which
ai workforce through technol- would lead to a signi cant drop in
explore green future ogy. crude-oil imports.
Huge potential in harnessing
world-leading Chinese solar tech- Under the BETTER project, the -
nologies to meet soaring demand company, established in 1993,
Balancing the for cleaner energy. gives tools to the ai workforce the new alternative-energy plan.
nationwide to improve their com- From 2012 to 2021, alternative-
biofuel dilemma Asean and China have pledged to puter literacy, apply practical ICT energy consumption would be
e usage of biofuels in the avia- exchange knowledge on how to skills and tools to their business, raised from 7,400 kilotonnes of
tion sector is set to gain momen- create low-carbon and livable cit- upgrade their job skills using ICT, oil or equivalent – the amount of
tum next week with the launch ies as part of the region’s growing improve their self-learning skills energy released by burning that...
of ai Airways ights using the green awareness. towards life-long-learning experi- Full story at http://goo.gl/nzQTZ
crop-based energy source. While ences, and gain more information
airlines see the shi as contribut- While Asean countries are en- accessible through the Internet. Tesco Lotus opens
ing to their nancial bottom-lines, dowed with rich natural resources, Thailand and Asia’s
as well as reducing global warm- a lot of damage has been done to Currently, 21,467 people are ben- first zero carbon
ing, it is against the backdrop of the environment over the past few e ting from the programme with
a growing debate over the impact decades of industrial.... expectations that the number will store
it will have on long-term land-use Full story at http://goo.gl/lKVzU reach 40,000. Participants con- Tesco Lotus last week an-
ratios and the price of food. rmed that the IT knowledge and nounced the opening of ai-
Microsoft’s con dence they gained improved... land and Asia’s rst zero carbon
In an announcement last week, BETTER project Full story at http://goo.gl/H4l2Z store in Bang Phra in Chon Buri
THAI said it is set to be the rst bags CSR award province,demonstrating its con-
airline in Asia to y a commer- Plan to raise tinued commitment to serving the
cial passenger ight using biofuels e American Chamber of Com- alternative energy ai people and supporting the
to support the company’s Travel merce in ailand (Amcham) has consumption ai economy, while continuing
Green initiative that is part of its picked the ‘BETTER’ programme to care for the environment. e
corporate social responsibility... ailand aims to increase con- store, which emits zero net carbon...
Full story at http://goo.gl/0ruX5 award from among 36 companies, sumption of alternative energy to Full story at http://goo.gl/U0Nhx
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15. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 13
General Inter
est liam Shakespea
re
Sponsored by.
.. Nature and life in JuliusCaesar.
Use the QR Code reader in your seasons of the
are cyclical _
year, life and dea
the
the phases of the th,
smartphone to see all the stories http://goo.gl/o
zbNM Caught up in dai moon, the tides.
ly details, we eas
Asia stands to ily forget that
the business wo
in a certain category. gain from W has cycles, too.
We
with the econom are all familiar
rld
est ic business cyc
le
Business Organizations Thailand remains
attractive
Twenty one member countries
of World Trade Organisation
http://goo.gl/PaEbK
(WTO) led 425 questions to the
Governance ai delegation joining the sixth
trade policy review in Geneva,
‘scorecard’ Switzerland.
planned for public
companies in Asean To Srirat Rastapana, director-gen-
-
Led by Securities Commission partment, the questions showed
- ailand’s relative attractiveness
nance (CG) experts are collabo- to foreign investment.
rating on the development of a
“CG scorecard” to rank publicly “ ailand is now among the top
listed companies in the region. 20 countries in global trade and
investment. In 2010, the value of
exports and imports accounted
- for 135 per cent of gross domestic
sity of Singapore Business School, product. ailand was ranked...
Rongruja Saicheua of the ai In- Full story at http://goo.gl/WouxX
specialist Prof Salleh Hassan, and Asean chief outlines
Prof Sidharta Utama from the In- broad goals of
donesian Institute for Corporate regional integration
Directorship.
In spite of the successful outcome
ey will assess Asean public of the Asean Leaders Summit in
companies against an array of Bali last week, the association and
evaluation criteria and develop a its key tradingpartners are expect-
ranking list of companies. e list ed to strengthen cooperation on Asean Leaders engagement with other dialogue
is expected to be released in the peace, social security and intra- Agree Myanmar partners.
rst quarter of 2012. regional trade to ensure a smooth Will Chair
integration into a single commu- As it turns out, the desire to con-
“For example, ai companies nity by 2015. struct an expansive Asean-led
have always come up with detailed Leaders of the 10-member As- regional architecture is being
“We are living with challenge and - challenged fervently by other
Singapore can learn from... a bubble economy. Asean and non-Asean EAS members. ey
Full story at http://goo.gl/k6eIE East Asian countries are expected chair the group in 2014, a move have already collectively de-
to enhance cooperation in eco- they say will provide further mo- manded to be treated as equal,
Enterprises urged nomic, social and environmental mentum for reform in the former as the sixth EAS scheduled on 18
to join trade spheres so that they will ensure military dictatorship.
associations stable growth,” Surin Pitsuwan... is a red-herring as it could under-
Full story at http://goo.gl/1usYv “All leaders are in agreement that mine the...
e Federation of ai Industries signi cant developments have Full story at http://goo.gl/iJ2KZ
(FTI), the country’s most power- Apec economies can
ful private-sector organisation, do their part: IMF those changes have made it more SCG chief calls for
has urged enterprises to strength- more intra-ASEAN
en their businesses through trade Asia Paci c economies are urged this responsibility,” Indonesian investment, FDI
associations to increase their bar- to lend their hands in balancing -
gaining power. the global economy in light of gawa told reporters in Bali today. Asean countries should be open
fragile situation in the euro zone, “We are trying to ensure that the to intra-region investment and
At a seminar on good business process of... speed up market integration as
practice, panellists urged enter- Fund managing director Chris- Full story at http://goo.gl/eASO4 well as invite foreign direct in-
prises to become members of tine Lagarde. vestment (FDI) as fast as pos-
trade associations so that the gov- Can Asean sible to reap the bene ts from the
ernment will listen to their con- She said that it is important to centrality be creation of the Asean Economic
cerns. avoid other risks to the global maintained at East Community (AEC), the head of
economy, especially those relat- ailand’s largest industrial con-
GIZ representative David Ober- ed to low growth and unaccept- Asia Summit? glomerate said yesterday.
huber said enterprises, particular- ably high unemployment. “For When Asean decided to invite the
ly small and medium-sized ones, APEC’s advanced economies, this United States and Russia to join Kan Trakulhoon, president and
should strengthen their coopera- means primarily adopting strong the premium leader-led East Asia chief executive o cer of Siam Ce-
tion so that they will have more medium-term scal consolida- Summit (EAS) in July 2010, it had ment Group (SCG), also assured
power to make their needs... tion plans, which will create... no idea that their presence would investors during the Asean...
Full story at http://goo.gl/QYrOX Full story at http://goo.gl/h2d7w impact on the overall pattern of Full story at http://goo.gl/de0BL

16. BANGKOK BUSINESS BRIEF January 2012 www.bangkokbusinessbrief.com
General Inter
est liam Shakespea
re
Sponsored by. Nature and life
..
Use your smartphone’s QR Code ar
The Chambers
seasons of the
year
the phases of the
scanner or enter the short code to p://goo.gl/ozbNM
htt Caught up in dai m
ly
As stan ily forget that
go directly to AMCHAM’s website.ia fromds to
gain has cycles, too.
with the econom a
the b
We
West ic
The American Chamber of Commerce
in Thailand (AMCHAM Thailand)
7th Floor, GPF Witthayu Tower A, 93/1 Wireless Road,
Lumpini, Pathumwan,
Bangkok 10330
Tel: +66 (0)2 254 1041
Fax: +66 (0)2 251 1605
Website: www.amchamthailand.com
Email: service@amchamthailand.com http://goo.gl/mbUpG
2012 Board of Board: Daleen (Dee) Richmond, President and CEO, General
Governors Elections Electric International Opera- Eggnog party to thank its mem-
e Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel - tions; David Lyman, Chairman, bers for their support. e party
- ing Director, Dana Spicer; John Tilleke Gibbins. includes Christmas foods, gi s
and of course plenty of eggnog.
Lunch, with an address from U.S. e newly elected Governors will Even Santa Claus was on-hand
Ambassador Kristie Kenney. - be joining returning board mem- to take gi requests from future
ager, Seagate; Douglas Harter de bers: Peter Eliot, Country O cer members.
During lunch ballots were count- - for ailand, Citibank; Janice Van
ed and at the conclusion of lunch tor Telematics. Re-elected for a Ekeren, Chief Financial O cer, In keeping with the holiday spirit,
second term were: Peter Fleet, Bank of Ayudhya; Bruce Hoppe,
Vice President of Asia Operations, -
elected Governors to the 2012 Company; Pornlert Lattanan, Emerson Electric; Brian Housh, cy Centre. Since 2007, this annual
English Solutions; Vorapong Vo- Centre toys and Baht 321,690.
rasuntharosoth, Government Af-
fairs Leader for South East Asia/
be received by children staying at
Dow Chemical. the Centre and by children who
lost possessions due to the ood.
Congratulations to the newly
elected 2012 Board Governors!
A Good Time for a Good Cause:
e Annual Festive Eggnog Party provide education support for
e American Chamber of Com- children of poor neighborhoods.
Today the Centre is part of the
celebrated the annual Eggnog Fes- Human Development Founda-
tive Holiday Party on December 8 tion under the Royal Patronage of
and raised Baht 71,810 and a full HRH Princess Srirasmi and pro-
cart of toys for donation to the vides education and quality of life
Human Development Founda- assistance to over 6,000 children
and over 5,000 adults.
AMCHAM ailand Charitable Foundation presents check for Baht
71,810 to Father Joe and his sta . Donated money was raised at
AMCHAM’s annual Festive Eggnog Party.

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