Meanwhile, trade value in the first seven months rose 11.5 per cent from the same period last year to $172.814 billion. Trade excluding oil, fuel and weaponry grew 8.3 per cent to $147.451 billion. Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit credited the rise to increasing demand for food, easing of Covid-19 lockdown measures, falling freight costs, and the weakening baht. However, the ministry said the value of Thai exports is likely to fall in the second half amid a slowdown in economies of trading partners and the global inflation crisis.

Some of the well-known NFT artists were Play Isreyah, MaArt Studio, Eveden, Warden, Atevada, Latte Latte, Coconut Sunday, ARCHIVERSE, Taitern, Maxyverse, CHANGLAND, Frontyr Studio, etc. Orchaporn “Jean” Warasirikul, owner of Latte Latte, said: “Latte is coffee. Latte, latte, is like offering happiness. The world can be changed by our own hands.”Coconut Sunday, a Thai band that performed on Metaverse in the Decentraland System, showed up live at Thailand Metaverse Expo 2022. For more information:https://www.thailandmetaverseexpo.asia/Main FB Page: Metaverse Thailand Expo 2022https://www.facebook.com/ThailandMetaverseExpoFB Page for Sport Metaverse: https://www.facebook.com/sportmetaverse/

Ms Kulthirath, seated centre, along with new committee members of the Thai e-Commerce Association. Theca on Thursday unveiled Ms Kulthirath, chief executive and co-founder of Thailand e-Business Centre, as its new president. Global e-commerce will move ahead in various forms, including live commerce and video commerce, both of which are expected to hit $500 billion in 2023. According to Ms Kulthirath, global e-commerce is forecast to reach $7.3 trillion in 2025, up from $5.5 trillion in 2022. Ms Kulthirath added other strategies include supporting fair competition; driving cross-border e-commerce; enhancing inclusiveness in e-commerce; empowering local sellers; supporting e-commerce software technology and e-payment; providing digital marketing and solutions for SMEs; and increasing the e-commerce workforce.

Prof Pirongrong Ramasoota, an NBTC commissioner, said on Thursday that the regulator would make sure that the rental rate for underground cable pipes would be fair. “The goal is to tidy up the telecom cables for the safety of people and the beauty of the country,” she said. Pirongrong also said that the NBTC was well prepared to cooperate with relevant state agencies in moving untidy overhead electrical and telecom cables underground. There were complaints that the rental rate for the use of underground cable pipelines was too high.

Speaking during a special group interview, Messe Düsseldorf Asia (MDA) managing director Gernot Ringling said many countries were investing in a variety of projects, both public and private, to create comprehensive infrastructure to support border reopenings. Transportation and logistics, including the use of renewable energy and EVs, and connectivity between nations are all part of the investments, he noted. Southeast Asia is the seventh largest economic bloc in the world and witnessing fast growth, a MDA study showed. By 2030, urbanisation will encompass 45 per cent and the demand for infrastructure development, including wires, cables, tubes, pipes, foundry and metallurgy and steel production will also grow, it said. Overall, finished-steel global consumption reached 1.77 billion tonnes, of which 73 per cent went to Asia.

Thailand’s new long-term visa regulationsSince the lifting of the strict lockdown in the first quarter of 2022, and the decrease in the number of Covid-19 cases, the Thai economy has shown signs of recovery. The LTR visa scheme is focused on making Thailand an even more attractive destination by simplifying the visa and work permit process and offering attractive incentives. The LTR visa will benefit certain foreigners and their dependents who meet the criteria set by the BOI which are divided into five categories. The concept of the LTR visa was introduced in 2021 and has been updated on an ongoing basis. Nevertheless, the LTR visa will provide the above attractive incentives to the holders as granted by the Thai government.

ICONCRAFT is one of the three brands opened in Pavilion Bukit Jalil recently from Thailand’s award winning and leading real estate and retail developer, Siam Piwat, under the collaboration with Pavilion Group, owner and operator of high-end department stores in Malaysia. It is a door of opportunity for over 800 Thai craftsmen, designers and local communities across Thailand and seeks to forge path towards modern trade and promote Thai brands to be known and recognized on the global stage. Mrs Parisa Chatnilbandhu, Senior Director of Retail Concept Shop, Siam Piwat Co. Ltd. said “ICONCRAFT has a mission to promote Thai craftsmen and local wisdom in a new angle of creative craftsmanship. With an aim to support the innovation capabilities and quality development for Thai artisans, we have collaborated with both domestic and international strong partners to open opportunity for Thai craftsmen to excel to their upmost capability and ultimately to share wonders with craft admirers. Sawasdee KL helps ICONCRAFT to achieve this.”

He said the baht could swing sideways until the results of a key US Federal Reserve meeting at Jackson Hole as investors might adjust their asset possessions and this could cause even the dollar to swing sideways. Poon believes political tensions here might ease in the short term and influence foreign investors to purchase Thai stocks, but this will not cause the baht to strengthen much because the investors will still offload Thai bonds. The strategist advised investors to use hedging tools such as options to manage risks in a highly volatile currency market.

After three days, a rash started to develop on his left arm and he also tested positive for Covid-19 on the same day. He was detected with the monkeypox virus, the BA 5.1 subvariant of Covid-19, and HIV-1 (with a viral load of 234,000 copies per millilitre of blood) on the following day. His antigen test result for Covid-19 was negative after two days in home isolation. There was no information on whether monkeypox from him could have spread to other people within 29 days. Researchers deduced that the patient was infected with monkeypox first and caught Covid-19 during the monkeypox’s incubation period.

(Xinhua photo)JAKARTA: The Indonesian popular resort island of Bali continued to revive its tourism sector from Covid-19 pandemic despite the ongoing foot and mouth disease (FMD) re-emergence in the Southeast Asian country. International tourists have started returning to Bali since February after a hiatus of more than two years due to the coronavirus pandemic. The disease has spread across 24 provinces with more than 500,000 livestock animals infected and more than 6,000 animals killed, according to the country's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB). However, the warnings did not prevent holidaymakers from those countries from visiting Bali, one of the world's best travel destinations. Pemayun said that Bali authorities continued to accelerate the vaccination program on livestock animals and carried out lockdown measures since the disease has severe consequences on animal health and trade.

Coups, courts, protests and Prayut: a Thai timelinePolitical groups opposed to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha take part in a protest near Government House ahead of a Constitutional Court decision on when his eight-year PM term ends, in Bangkok on Tuesday. Following the court's decision, here is a brief look at the past two turbulent decades in Thai politics. 2010 - More than 90 people are killed as army forces commanded by Gen Prayut open fire on pro-Thaksin "Red Shirts" protesting in downtown Bangkok. A snap 2014 election is annulled and the military -- led by Gen Prayut -- seizes power. - Reform and delays -2016 – Gen Prayut oversees a crackdown on dissent and wins a referendum to change the constitution.

Cabinet approves B2.92bn EV subsidy packageThe cabinet on Tuesday approved spending worth 2.92 billion baht to subsidise electric vehicle (EV) purchases, aiming to drive Thailand to become the region's EV production base and increase the competitiveness of its EV manufacturing industry. According to government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri, the subsidies offered for the purchase of passenger cars, pickup trucks and motorcycles range from 18,000 to 150,000 baht per unit. CKD pickups priced less than 2 million baht with a battery size of more than 30 kWh will be entitled to a 150,000 baht subsidy per unit. Meanwhile, electric motorcycles priced up to 150,000 baht will receive an 18,000 baht subsidy per unit for both CKD and CBU units. Duangjai Asawachintachit, secretary-general of the Board of Investment, said the board is upbeat that overall EV production will reach 900,000 to one million units by late this year or early next year.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha at Government House on Tuesday. (Photo: Chanat Katanyu)All eyes are on whether the Constitutional Court will on Wednesday accept a petition filed by the opposition bloc seeking a ruling on Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's eight-year tenure. Speaking after Tuesday's cabinet meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam said the court will meet today and it remains to be seen whether it will accept the petition for consideration. The Secretariat of the House of Representatives on Monday forwarded the petition signed by 171 opposition MPs to the court. "If the court accepts it, it will then make a decision about whether to suspend Gen Prayut temporarily [until the judges rule on the issue].

The study also found that shoppertainment could unlock $1 trillion (36 trillion baht) in market value for brands in Asia Pacific (APAC) by 2025. As for Thailand, shoppertainment is projected to grow from $3.4 billion in 2022 to more than $12.4 billion by 2025. Therefore, connecting with consumers through shoppertainment — with entertainment first, commerce second approach — is a must. Shoppertianment will redefine the formula of success for brands," said Sirini. Titled "Shoppertainment: APAC's Trillion-Dollar Opportunity", the report surveyed markets across six countries with high potential growth in the Asia Pacific region, including Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, South Korea, and Japan.

Deputy government spokeswoman Trisulee Trisaranakul said the Malaysian minister has expressed interest in Thailand’s policy to use ganja and hemp for medicinal purposes and for generating revenue for the country. Malaysia has also announced its policy to use marijuana for medical treatments. She said Anutin and his Malaysian counterpart would discuss Thailand’s draft marijuana law, the obstacles, problems and restrictions in implementing the policy on using cannabis for medical treatment and as a cash crop. She said Anutin would also lead a Malaysian health delegation to observe plantations of hemp and ganja and observe the process of making medicines and cosmetics from the plants.