PRESS DIGEST - Thai newspapers on June 13
BANGKOK, June 13 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in Thai newspapers on Friday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
TOP STORIES
- Farmers and fishermen demanded that the government help them cope with economic hardships caused by falling product prices and soaring fuel costs (BANGKOK POST)
- The Employment Department plans to impose a levy of 200 -600 baht ($6-18) per worker on employers who hire workers from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos (BANGKOK POST)
- There is doubt that the government's "coupons for the poor" scheme will reach the people who most need help (BANGKOK POST)
BUSINESS
- Consumer confidence fell for the second straight month in May due to growing anti-government protests and the highest inflation in almost a decade, led by rising fuel prices (BANGKOK POST)
- About a quarter of Thailand's 400,000 small retailers have gone out of business due to aggressive expansion by giant modern retailers, the Thai Chamber of Commerce said (THE NATION)
- The ongoing anti-government protests will affect Thailand's tourism industry in the long term, even though there has been no violence yet, an industry executive said (BANGKOK POST)
- Amata Vietnam, a subsidiary of industrial estate developer Amata Corp, has cut its net profit projection by 5 percent as foreign investors delayed investment decisions due to Vietnam's soaring inflation (THE NATION)
- Siam Cement Group (SCC.BK), Thailand's biggest industrial conglomerate, expected a slight impact from the economic slowdown in Vietnam, one the group's main strategic investment destinations (BANGKOK POST)
- Bangkok Bank BBL.BK said it expected flat net earnings growth this year, as soaring inflation and global market turmoil curb demand for loans (BANGKOK POST)
- Steel firms have been advised to list on the stock exchange where they can raise capital for the huge investment needed to expand output and meet rising demand (THE NATION)
- BankThai BT.BK will sell off 29.7 billion baht worth of non-performing loans this month to two state-owned asset management companies in a bid to raise funds to keep its capital funds over minimum legal requirements (BANGKOK POST)
- Sahaviriya Steel Group SSI.BK, Thailand's largest steel maker, is seeking a long-term loan from the Export-Import Bank of China for the first phase worth 90 billion baht of its smelting plant (BANGKOK POST) ($1=33.14 Baht)
