Thailand.org

Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej went on a liquid diet as part of a regimen to improve his health in the wake of his 81st birthday reports the Royal Household. The King suffered from an infection, and signs show that his health is improving after treatment. As a result, he was unable to give his annual speech, which was made, instead, by other members of the Royal Family at Chitralada Palace.

The Suvarnabhumi Bangkok International Airport re-opened on Friday after several days of protests forced the Airport to temporarily close. On its first day of full operations, Thai Airways and Bangkok Airways initiated flights, and international departures are expected to resume full operations shortly. Along with the Don Mueang Airport, the re-opening of the airways allows for a continuity of both travel and trade in the country.

In the wake of public protests in the capital, Bangkok, the government’s athletic body has shifted the Southeast Asia soccer tournament to Phuket island. Coach Peter Reid will lead the squad at the tournament at Phuket, which will be away from the on-going protects which have blockaded the capital city’s main airports. The tournament begins with a December 6th match against rival Indonesia, along with subsequent matches against Vietnam and Malaysia.The Thailand Football Association announced the shift on Friday after consulting with the Asean Football Federation. Suzuki Cup games will be played at Surakul Stadium on the Island.

Even as the global economy is under growing duress, the Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization is moving forward with a plant to limit carbon emissions next year. Earlier this month, the agency approved elements of the Kyoto Protocol by moving forward with “carbon sink” allowances, so that corporations can off-set their emissions with conservation projects.

Already, industrial concerns have opened up projects such as a teak forest in Sakon Nakhon to qualify for such allowances. In the context of this plan, the Energy Ministry of the Thai government has set a goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 20% within 10 years. The majority of the country’s emissions come from the energy and transportation industries. AS part of the effort to reduce emissions in the energy sector, the government has created carbon emission reduction programs such as biogas and biomass production which industrial concerns could utilize to balance their emissions.

With a price of just under 33,000 Baht, the Blackberry Bold will hit the Thai cell phone market this month.

Blackberry Bold

The phone is an advanced version of Blackberry’s previous generation, designed to take the traditional Blackberry form and function to a new level, the Bold has an upgraded media player, camera, battery life, and, most importantly, improved business document handling from email to spreadsheets to on line collaboration.

The Bold upgrades its memory to 1GB with 128 Meg of Flash, real-time GPS powered by Tri Band and Wi-Fi access and complete Bluebooth support. With an improved 480 x 320 LCD screen, the phone is compatible with most media formats, and has an integrated 2 mega-pixel camera. Running on the 3G networks, you can browse the Internet with speed, and easily send off emails with the improved keyboard. The Bold also features more advanced applications such as the Black Berry Messenger that allows real-time business or personal communications. With improved battery life, you can use the Bold for a complete day, to get the most out of the new features in Thailand and beyond.

With challenges in Western markets, General Motors has recently cut back on its production in Thailand. The Southeast Asia division of GM will temporarily close several manufacturing plans until the end of the year, signaling how widespread the global economic recession has become. As recently as early this year, car companies hailed emerging markets, such as Thailand, as a prime growth opportunity.

Thai Manufacturing

Today, GM employs a few thousand workers in the county, and had the capacity to produce over 100,000 vehicles at its Thailand plants. With the announcement, the company will lowered its employment roles by roughly 250 workers, and continues to reduce its outlook heading into 2009. In the United States, GM has faced financial difficulties related to its union contracts, high fixed costs and a lack of available financing as its overall sales slow. Just this year, Toyota surpassed the company as the world’s top overall automotive company by sales, signalling a larger shift in the market.

The company formally entered the Thai auto market in 1993, and opened its first domestic plan in 2000 in Rayong at the Eastern Seaboard Industrial Center. The plant produces Chevrolet cars and tracks, including the Zafira truck, the Aveo compact, the Captiva SUV, the Colorado truck and the Lumina car, for the Thai market. With its headquarters in Bangkok, GM has worked closely with the Thai government to expand its operations in recent years.

In his first game as the national coach for Thailand’s football team, Peter Reid’s squad fell 1 to 0 in an exhibition with Saudi Arabia. The match was played at King Fahd Stadium at Riyadh, and served as a warm up for the Saudi team which is currently preparing for the next stage of its World Cup qualifying matches. Next up for the Saudi team is South Korea, who currently leads pool B of their qualifying group, later this month.

In an effort to ensure that visiting foreign ministers will not be influenced by domestic political movements, the Thai government shifted the ASEAN summit to Chiang Mai in North Thailand. Originally planned to be held in Bangkok, members of the People’s Alliance for Democracy continue to hold protects at the Prime Minister’s compound.

To ensure that delegates can focus on regional cooperation in monetary and fiscal policy to help alleviate the current economic slowdown, ASEAN members Vietnam, Singapore, Philippines and other swill meet with representatives from China, Japan and South Korea at the December meeting.

While the officially announced reason for the move related to climate issues, diplomats wondered whether it is related to domestic politics. The meeting is planned started December 11th at the Shangri La Resort.

Bangkok Governor Election Posters

Bangkok governor Apirak Kosayohin won re-election this week by a wide margin. Running against People’s Power Party candidate Prapas Chonsanguan, Kosayodhin, leading of the Democrat Party, won an addition four year team. The election results come in the context of political instability at the federal level as the country seeks a governing coalition.

Apirak, who worked as a telecommunications businessman before entering politics, has been a popular opposition mayor of the nation’s capital in recent years. Third party candidate Chuwit Kamolvisit also made news for a physical confrontation with a journalist during the intense election campaign.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga won the Thailand Open tennis tournament over favorite Novak Djokovic.  The pair also played in the final of the Australian Open, where Djokovic had prevailed against a then un-seeded Tsonga. In a close match, Tsonga won in straight sets 7-6, 6-4 after surging from a tie-break in the second second to take the game.