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Allianz Ayudhya posts strong Q1 results
Allianz Ayudhya Assurance has reported strong operating results for the first quarter with gross written premium (GWP) from all distribution channels increasing by 12 per cent to Bt5.6 billion over the same period last year.
Chief executive officer Bryan Smith yesterday said the company had achieved annualised new premium of Bt1.283 billion in the period, for a year-on-year increase of 8 per cent.
Net profit amounted to Bt649 million, 26 per cent higher than in the first three months of last year.
For the remaining three quarters, Allianz Ayudhya will move forward to strengthen all distribution channels, especially the agency channel, with effective teams combined with service excellence and innovations for customers, sales agents and business partners, he said, adding that more details will be revealed soon.
“With all these efforts, we are confident that we can achieve Bt25 billion in GWP from all distribution channels by the end of 2013,” said the CEO.
KAM launches fixed-income fund with 2.7% per annum
Given the likelihood that local interest rates will remain low, fund manager Krungsri Asset Management (KAM) expects investors will look for short- and medium-term investments that give higher returns than bank interest rates.
The company has therefore launched the Krungsri Fixed Income 6M61 Fund, which offers a return of 2.7 per cent per annum, CEO Chatrapee Tantixalerm said yesterday.
Minimum investment in the fund, which will be sold from June 4-10, is only Bt10,000.
The new fund will invest in both local and foreign bonds, and in deposits overseas, he said.
BA extends baggage deal for Thais studying in the UK
British Airways is extending its special baggage allowance offer for Thais studying in the United Kingdom.
Under this offer, which was launched two years ago, students who purchase a special BA student fare to the UK are entitled to check in an additional bag, with a maximum weight of 23 kilograms, free of charge. This takes each customer’s free baggage allowance to 46kg in total.
Based on data compiled by the Tourism and Sports Ministry, 144,499 Thais visited the UK last year, representing an increase of 4.6 per cent from the previous year. The second most popular long-haul destination was Australia, attracting 117,283 visitors from the Kingdom.
“2012 was a milestone year for the UK in terms of visitors from Thailand. As well as the increase in volume, most visitors chose to stay an average of 9.8 days,” said Sriram Narayan, BA country manager, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.
The carrier’s research reveals that the current strength of the baht against the British pound has made travel to the UK more attractive for many Thais. “In particular, we have seen strong demand from students who wish to study in schools and universities in the UK,” he said.
The student fare, which starts from just Bt25,500, is available for purchase until the end of this year.
PTT adds new unit
PTT has set up a wholly owned subsidiary, Poly Methyl Methacrylate, with registered capital of Bt660 million to produce feedstock for glass-substitution engineering-plastic production, mainly for the automobile, electronics and construction sectors.
NBTC deadline delay
The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission’s broadcasting committee is extending until June 30 the deadline for registering cable- and satellite-TV licences, so that it can examine the 233 applications outstanding plus those expected from further applicants. Natee Sukonrat, head of the panel, said yesterday it had approved the extension in principle.
