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SRT seeks to lease land to Finance Ministry
The State Railway of Thailand is seeking to lease out two land plots at Makkasan and Mae Nam railway stations to the Finance Ministry, to pay down SRT’s accumulated debt of about Bt100 billion.
The plots could be leased for 50 years, with another 50-year extension period, said SRT Governor Prapat Chongsanguan. The agency is employing a consulting agency to study in detail the expected return from the leases.
He said SRT had previously studied what it could earn from 30-year leases of the two plots to private companies, with 30-year extensions.
“According to that study, if they were leased by the private sector, each plot would generate a return of more than Bt60 billion. If we provide those plots for long-term leases by the Finance Ministry, they will provide full compensation of all debts we have with the ministry,” Prapat said.
He said SRT favoured long-term leases as it did not want to lose ownership of the land.
Business slow at Paradise Park
MBK, the operator of MBK Shopping Centre and Paradise Park, has not seen a recovery in purchasing power of Thai shoppers yet, especially at Paradise Park, which is facing low consumer traffic, said its chief executive officer and managing director, Suwet Thirawachirakun.
At Paradise Park, construction on Srinakarin Road has been a barrier to people wanting to visit the mall, causing the number of shoppers per day to drop to 50,000 from the target of 70,000-80,000.
He said that besides the drop in traffic, average spending per bill had declined among Thai shoppers, although foreigners’ spending remained at a good level.
The company plans to use social media to target customers and develop comprehensive marketing activities.
CP Indonesia inks loan pact
Charoen Pokphand Indonesia this week signed a syndicated-loan agreement worth the equivalent of Bt15.6 billion with 20 banks in Jakarta.
The largest poultry company in Indonesia will use the loans to refinance its debts and fund future expansion projects.
DBS Bank, Citibank Indonesia, ANZ Indonesia and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation acted as the loans’ mandated lead arrangers and book runners. – The Jakarta Post/ANN
Manila takes Thailand to WTO
The Philippines may turn to a world body to compel Thailand to compensate a local cigarette maker.
The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the Philippines on behalf of Philip Morris Philippines Manufacturing Inc and submitted to the World Trade Organisation.
In their complaint, Manila officials claimed that the Thai government had been unfair in dealing with imported cigarette brands, particularly in terms of its customs valuation practices, excise tax, health tax, value-added tax, retail licensing requirements, and import guarantees imposed on cigarette importers.
In 2011, the appellate body of the WTO ruled in favour of the Philippines and declared that Thailand was unfairly treating cigarette imports from the Philippines. – Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
P&G has ‘best leadership’
Procter & Gamble has been named the best company for leadership, followed by Microsoft, General Electric and Coca-Cola.
According to a study by Hay Group, a global management consulting firm, the “Best Companies for Leadership” are purposeful and strategic in developing, enabling and motivating leaders throughout the organisation to do their best.
In fact, 73 per cent of the top 20 companies reported giving everyone at every level of the organisation the opportunity to develop and practise the capabilities needed to lead others, compared with only 47 per cent of all other companies.
These future-focused companies also look ahead to what roles are – and will be – mission-critical to their success, and then intentionally identify and develop leaders with the right skills to fill those roles.
Seminar on successful innovation
The European Asean Business Centre will tomorrow host a seminar on “Success Stories on Innovation in Thailand – A Key Driver of Economic Growth through Technology”.
Presided over by Science Minister Peerapan Palusuk, the seminar will feature a speech on “A Bridge to Growth through Collaboration: Thailand Policy Plan on Innovation and Technology” by the minister’s adviser, Nirut Khunnawat.
Hosted in cooperation with the Science and Technology Ministry, the seminar aims to promote the importance of home-grown innovation in contributing to economic development and raising awareness among Thai participants and European small and medium-sized enterprises of the value of innovation and intellectual property.
The focus is on incremental improvements and capitalising on them.
The event will also highlight the concept of monitoring and measuring innovation, research and development, and technology diffusion as tools that directly affect organic growth in Thailand.
Other speakers will discuss why innovation is a source for a nation’s wealth and how Thai innovations became success stories in the global economy.
Thailand Post logistics unit
Thailand Post has won the Cabinet’s approval to set up a logistics subsidiary.
The Information and Communications Technology Ministry and the state enterprise will work out the investment plan and how the logistics venture can make use of Thailand Post’s infrastructure.
The logistics network would complement the government’s infrastructure investment.
True Corp rating affirmed
TRIS Rating has affirmed the company rating of True Corporation at “BBB” and the rating of True’s existing senior debentures at “BBB-”.
TRIS has also assigned the rating of “BBB-” to True’s proposed issue of up to Bt6 billion in senior debentures.
The outlook remains “negative”.
True plans to use the proceeds for debt refinancing and expansion.
True’s credit ratings reflect its leading position as an integrated telecom company with established infrastructure in various technological platforms, strong market positions in fixed-line broadband Internet and pay-television segments and expected continuing financial support from major shareholders.
Advice on digital move
Thailand’s broadcast market is set to be the busiest in the region after this year’s auction of licences for digital TV channels, according to Frost & Sullivan, a consulting company.
Marc Einstein, industry principal for digital media and telecoms, said that when the United States undertook the transition in 2009, disconnecting households from the old analog system became a very politically charged issue. While only about 3 per cent of households were unprepared at the point of the switch, the US government spent more than US$1 billion (Bt31 billion) educating the public.
The US government also set aside $890 million in vouchers for people to obtain analog-to-digital converters.
Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission is urged to clarify its policies on subsidies and consumer education to avoid problems with the transition.
As 49 companies have registered to bid for 24 licences, this leads to some speculation that Thai news coverage in particular will become more diverse and more international, the firm said.
One of the greatest benefits of the transition might in fact not even have to do with the TV market at all. Transitioning from analog to digital TV will free up a significant amount of radio frequencies that can be re-farmed for mobile purposes, which might go a long way in alleviating the country’s woes over providing third- and fourth-generation wireless broadband.
