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Second lot of government saving bonds to be issued in September
The Ministry of Finance is scheduled to issue the second
lot of saving bonds, worth 20 billion baht, after a successful sale of the
first lot. The Government Savings Bank (GSB) has been assigned to handle the
subscription which is expected in early September.
Meanwhile, the Director-General of the Public Debt
Management Office, Pannee Sathavarodom, said the Ministry of Finance had
asked every commercial bank which handled the sales of the first lot of the
saving bonds valued at 70 billion baht, held on August 16 and fully
subscribed in only about 10 minutes, to report their sales after complaints
were lodged by many disappointed people that the subscription was carried
out unfairly. She said information given by the banks showed that public
demand for the saving bond worth 50 billion baht was still high.
The Ministry of Finance will allow only the GSB to handle
the sale of the upcoming second lot. Coupons on the second lot of the saving
bond remain unchanged, with a seven-year maturity carrying the interest rate
of 5.1 percent, and 10 years carrying the interest rate of 5.9 percent. (TNA)
Students are failing to address skills shortages
The director of a prominent vocational college berated
students for failing to apply for courses which met the needs of the
domestic labor market, pointing out that graduates were failing to address
current skills shortages, particularly in the metal industry.
Accusing many students of simply choosing courses
according to the latest fashions, Prawit Phaibon, director of Chiang Mai
Technical College, said that few students applied for courses for subjects
in which there were genuine labor shortages. For instance, almost no
students opted to study metal molding, with the result that the nation
lacked over 30,000 skilled metal molders, despite the fact that metal
molding was vital for industrial production, whether of automobiles,
glassware or electrical goods.
To address this shortage, the nation is importing metal
molders from abroad, while the government is offering free training for
domestic metal molding students. However, even this offer and promises of
high wages have failed to attract many students, with only 100 currently
taking up places. (TNA)
Department stores agree
to shorter operating hours
In an attempt to free the country from depending on oil
imports, Thailand is introducing an energy saving campaign to its department
stores by shortening their opening hours. The surge in world oil prices has
been a main force behind the campaign.
On August 25, Minister of Commerce Watana Muangsook said
that the national energy saving campaign would kick off at large department
stores within two weeks’ time. He said the campaign would help save the
country over three billion baht annually in electricity costs.
Watana believes the new and shortened operating hours for
department stores will not have a negative impact on their sales. ‘’We
will try it out for a month, and then we will evaluate whether it puts the
business at risk,’’ he said.
Reporters who spoke to staff employed by several major
department stores in Bangkok said most of them supported the campaign, but
were still uncertain of its impact on their sales. (TNA)
Bid to lower transportation costs
Finance Minister Somkid Jatusripitak is optimistic that
Thailand could lower transportation costs within the next five or six years,
with plans on the setting up of a national logistics committee to oversee
transportation activities.
Somkid said if Thailand wants to develop its
transportation system to that of international standards, concerned state
enterprises must join hands in developing the system seriously. He said an
achievement could be made within the next five or six years, and that a
proposal would be submitted for cabinet approval soon.
The Deputy Secretary General of the National Economic and
Social Development Board (NESDB), Vilaiporn Liewkasemsarn, proposed at a
meeting on transportation network development that concerned agencies must
cooperate with each other if Thailand wants to become regional logistics
hub. She said if the country could save transportation costs by 0.5% of the
total value of exports and imports, it could save as much as 28.5 billion
baht annually.
Surapol Wongwatanaroj, president of Thai National
Shippers’ Council, said several economies such as Australia, Hong Kong,
Singapore, the European Union (EU) and the United States were now attempting
to reduce costs for private businessmen and the Thai government needs to
amend laws and regulations to facilitate the private sector. He proposed
that Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI) operate low
cost fares for goods transportation, as businessmen were suffering from high
costs of fuel, while shippers had also started raising freight charges.
Kanok Abhiradee, THAI’s president, said the airline had
established a farm product center in which it would cooperate with concerned
agencies in inspecting the quality of the products before they were shipped
out of the country in order to prevent a rejection. He said air freight
charges would be waived for members of farm product exporters’
associations, which ship between 1-10 tons abroad in order to meet overseas
demands. (TNA)
Industries urged to cut energy consumption
Minister of Industry Pinij Jarusombat has conferred with
senior officials of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) on plans for
industrial plants to reduce energy consumption by 10%, which could save expenses
on energy by about 30 billion baht annually. Also, the Ministry of Industry
wants the plants to report on their progress of energy conservation on a monthly
basis.
Speaking after holding talks with FTI ranking officials,
Pinij said he had instructed that every industrial plant reduce oil consumption
by 10%, which would enable the country to save about 30 billion baht in foreign
exchange annually. He told manufacturers of steel and cement businesses, which
consume the most energy among industries in the country, to prepare their
monthly plans to reduce power consumption in order to meet the planned target,
which would not affect production.
The energy minister also held talks with the Ministry of
Finance about offering tax incentives to industrial operators, designed to
persuade operators to cut down their oil consumption. Meanwhile, the FTI plans
to organize a competition on energy conservation among industrial plants.
Winners will receive a certificate from the Industry Ministry. (TNA)
Unithai signs major shipbuilding contract with NP Marine Co
Thailand’s largest shipyard, Unithai Shipyard and
Engineering Ltd. in Laem Chabang recently signed a shipbuilding contract
with NP Marine Co for a 150 TEU Lloyds Classified Containership. The
construction of this new vessel is scheduled for completion and delivery in
14 months. The vessel is designed to serve Thailand’s coastal trade.
 Unithai
Shipyard and Engineering Ltd. has fully equipped workshops with two floating
dry docks.
Unithai Shipyard and Engineering Ltd. owns and operates
the largest shipyard in Thailand. The shipyard has fully equipped workshops
with two floating dry docks that are capable of operating a complete range
of ship repairs, modifications and conversion services for vessels up to
140,000 dwt, and shipbuilding for vessels up to 150 meters in length. An
experienced team of multinational managers leads a labor force of nearly
2,000 people.
NP Marine Co Ltd, part of the SC Group of Companies, owns and operates a
fleet of 37 tug boats, and logistics support for the petrochemical and
marine business in Thailand.
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