Briefs

Malaysia-based AirAsia, the region’s biggest budget air carrier, plans to raise up to US$200 million (Bt6.2 billion) by listing its Thai unit by the second quarter of this year, a company official said yesterday.
Aireen Omar, AirAsia’s head of corporate finance, said the money raised through the initial public offering would be used for expansion and the purchase of aircraft.
She said an application to list 750 million shares on the Stock Exchange of Thailand had been submitted to authorities last month.
AirAsia has grown rapidly since former record-industry executive Tony Fernandes bought the failing airline in 2001.
Its route system has spread throughout Asia and beyond, and the company has set up subsidiaries in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines and is planning one to serve Japan’s budget market.
The company first announced in late 2010 that it planned to list Thai AirAsia by the end of 2011 but the plan was delayed amid adverse market conditions.
Thai AirAsia currently serves several cities in Thailand with a fleet of two dozen aircraft. – AFP

OCS Group buys Singapore’s DTG
The OCS Group, Britain’s largest privately owned facilities-management company, has acquired Singapore’s home-grown outsourced cleaning specialist, Don Thaker Group (DTG), said Chris Cracknell, OCS global group chief executive officer.
London-based OCS has 60,000 staff worldwide and annual revenue exceeding