Thailand Focus Week of April 15th, 2015

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Royal Thai Embassy, Washington, D.C.
Week of April 15, 2015 Executive Summary

  • Trafficked Thais return home, fishing vessels inspected
  • Prime Minister hands out seized land to poor farmers
  • Officials moving tigers out of famed tiger temple
  • Reformers take on monopolies; record bond issues forecast
  • ASEAN countries urged to monitor local IS recruits

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Trafficked Thais return home, fishing vessels inspected

The Royal Thai Air Force brought home 68 Thai fishermen last week from the island of Ambon in Indonesia where they said they had been stranded after being trafficked onto trawlers and used as forced laborers, as government inspections of fishing vessels to prevent trafficking began in earnest at four key ports in Southern Thailand.  Read more

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Prime Minister hands out seized land to poor farmers

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha presided over a ceremony in Northern Thailand in which plots of forest land seized by the government from illegal encroachers were given to landless families.  The Prime Minister used the authority provided for under Article 44 of the interim constitution to donate the land, as government representatives briefed the diplomatic corps on the Article and how the Prime Minister would use it.  Read more

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Officials moving tigers out of famed tiger temple

Thailand’s government took strong action this month to protect wildlife as officials from the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation began moving all 146 tigers from the country’s famed “Tiger Temple” to wildlife breeding centers and sanctuaries after repeated complaints the endangered cats were being abused.   Read more

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Reformers take on monopolies; record bond issues forecast

Reformers are planning to grant more power to a watchdog tasked with breaking up business monopolies, as the Thai Bond Market Association predicted last week that Thai companies will set a new record this year for corporate bond issues.  Read more

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ASEAN countries urged to monitor local IS recruits

Countries in the region need to monitor Islamic State recruiting tactics aimed at local Muslims to prevent them from joining the Middle Eastern terror group and then returning to Southeast Asia where they could subsequently launch attacks in their home countries, according to a Professor at Thailand’s Thammasat University who specializes in the Middle East.   Read more

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In this issue

Thailand at a Glance

4th Quarter 2014 Key Indicators
GDP: 0.7%
Export: $56.8 billion
Import: $49.1 billion
Export growth rate: – 1.5%
Import growth rate: – 5.7%
Current account balance: Surplus by 9.815 billion USD
Trade surplus: $7.7 billion
Unemployment: 0.6%
Headline inflation: -0.52%
Official foreign reserves: $157.11 billion USD
2014
GDP: $373.6 billion
GDP per capita: $5,445
GDP growth: 1.5-2.0%

2013
GDP: $385 billion
GDP per capita: $5,647
GDP growth: 2.9%

2012
GDP: $366 billion
GDP per capita: $5,390
GDP growth: 6.5%

2011
GDP: $345.6 billion
GDP per capita: $5,113
GDP growth: 0.1%

Archives

April 7,2015

March 30,2015
March 24,2015
March 16,2015
March 9,2015
March 2,2015

February 23,2015
February 17,2015
February 9,2015
February 2,2015

January 26,2015
January 20,2015
January 12,2015
January 5,2015

Thailand Focus 2014
Thailand Focus 2013
Thailand Focus 2012
Thailand Focus 2011

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