Thailand 20260807
Mekong Memo Thailand Weekly: Business, politics, finance, trade & legal news.
News from Southeast Asia directly to your inbox every weekday.
The Mekong Memo is proudly presented by:
Horton International is your premier partner for executive search in Southeast Asia. Whether you're a small startup or a global corporation, our reliable and effective recruiting solutions are tailored to meet your unique needs. With extensive experience and offices across the region, we excel at overcoming recruitment challenges and securing top talent for your organization.
Click here to learn how Horton can make your life easier.
The Memo is published weekdays - Cambodia (every Monday), Myanmar (Tuesday), Laos (Wednesday), Vietnam (Thursday) and Thailand (Friday). The Thailand edition is free in its entirety; the others usually abbreviated for non-paid subscribers.
Please go to https://www.mekongmemo.com/account to select country editions you would like to receive without affecting your overall subscription status.
Red Carpet for Min Aung Hlaing
Thailand gave Myanmar's junta-chief-turned-president a military band, an honor guard, and a literal red carpet on his arrival. It’s a welcome not often afforded one of the world's most isolated leaders. Min Aung Hlaing, a man the ICC prosecutor has been looking to arrest for (alleged) crimes against humanity, walked the carpet with Prime Minister Anutin before talks that resulted in three cooperation deals for migrant labor, border-river water quality, and satellite data. Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow tried to make the reception sound more careful than eager, saying its "calibrated re-engagement" to bring Myanmar back into ASEAN. Amnesty International Thailand condemned the reception; Thailand signed the Rome Statute in 2000 but never ratified it.
Read more: Nation Thailand (state welcome), CNA (ICC context), Nation Thailand (bridge reopening), Nation Thailand (Sihasak comments), Yahoo News SG (criticism)
NBTC Boycott Leaves Thaicom 4 Satellite Hanging
The telecom regulator failed to reach quorum for the second straight month, and the board meeting collapsed after three commissioners refused to recognize chairman Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck's authority. A fourth walked out the moment he entered the room. A Senate selection committee had ruled Sarana lacks the legal qualifications for the post; he insists he is legally obligated to serve. Sarana says the paralysis now threatens the Thaicom 4 satellite, a device that has an engineering-life-expiration next month (after two previous extensions) and needs board acknowledgement to keep it running. The digital TV broadcast transition, funding approvals for several projects, and four-digit shortcodes for private companies are also in limbo. The board’s next meetings are penciled in for August 11, 13 and 19.
Read more: Bangkok Post
State Databases Leak Twice in a Week
Vehicle-registration records from the Department of Land Transport turned up online, days after personal data from 200,000 investors leaked out of more than five million shareholder accounts held by Thailand Securities Depository Co. Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaichanok Chidchob said investigators found no evidence the DLT system was “hacked” and access was found to be connected to an account that logged in twice before the data was released. Police Colonel Surapong Plengkham of the Personal Data Protection Committee said the pattern looks more like unauthorized access under Section 7 of the Computer Crime Act. A ThaiCERT team has been sent to the DLT to run forensics.
Read more: Nation Thailand
UOB Sees Rates Frozen Through 2027
Headline inflation was tamed to 1.95% through July from 2.42% in June, but core CPI firmed to 1.34%, and UOB economists say that the story is in that difference because it means that oil, the baht, and the current account are doing the work, not a demand-led boom that would justify adjusting rates. Their crystal ball shows a hold at 1.00% through the end of next year, with headline CPI at 2.8% in 2026 and 1.4% in 2027.
Read more: Bangkok Post (prices), FX Street (rate forecast)
Cabinet Approves 7.2B Baht EEC Reservoir
The cabinet approved 7.2 billion baht for the Klong Wang Tanod reservoir in Chanthaburi, a 99.5 million cubic meter basin that would be used to keep the Eastern Economic Corridor from running dry. Construction will run through fiscal 2027 to 2033, and the water is expected to allow for the irrigation of more than 87,700 rai of farmland in addition to providing industrial and household supply. At the present, the eastern region's six large and 52 medium reservoirs hold 2.5 billion cubic meters; demand is expected to rise to 2.89 billion next year and exceed 3.5 billion by 2037.
Read more: Bangkok Post
Refiners Want to Ease Diesel Export Ban
The Federation of Thai Industries is trying to get a softening of the March diesel export ban, but left its meeting with Energy Minister Akanat Promphan without a deal. Laos currently gets has a carve-out of more than 4 million liters a day and Myanmar gets about 300,000, but refiners are sitting on extra product they’re not able to move. Jet fuel shipments to the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam were carved out in May. The FTI says that current reserves will support more than 100 days of use, and rainy-season needs will be soft as truckers “avoid flooded routes.” (?)
Read more: Bangkok Post
Firms Chase AI Gains They Can't Staff
Enterprise planners expect they will raise AI investment by at least 50%, the highest share found in a survey of eight Asian markets, with almost four-fifths of respondents said they will be increasing AI-related budgets. The catch is that almost two-thirds suggested that a lack of AI skills is their most urgent support need, and more than half thought that implementation costs were a major impediment to greater adoption.
Read more: Bangkok Post
Airport Security Can Open Checked Bags From October
It seems surprising that it’s not already the case, but apparently starting October 16, airport security will be able to open flagged checked bags without tracking down the owner first. They will be allowed to open bags, record the search and then notify the passenger after. CAAT says the change is in line with what’s already done in Singapore, Japan, South Korea, the US and parts of Europe/ the Middle East. TSA-approved locks are recommended; damage complaints will be taken through the airlines or CAAT's portal.
Read more: Nation Thailand (new rule), Bangkok Post (lock advice)
Ex-DLA Chief Charged Over Rigged Exam
Theerut Suphawiboonphol, who ran the Department of Local Administration until this scandal broke, showed up at the Crime Suppression Division to answer to six charges, including malfeasance and the forging of official documents. He is one of 13 suspects in a scheme that allegedly changed answer sheets at a private testing center in Nonthaburi. Seven local officials accused of the paper-tampering are expected to report on Monday, and investigators say they’ll be handing the full case file to the National Anti-Corruption Commission by next Wednesday.
Read more: Bangkok Post
That's all for this week, thanks for reading. Your voice matters to us. Feel we're missing something? Have additional sources to suggest? Don't hold back- hit reply and tell us what you think.
If you value the Mekong Memo, please consider buying (or gifting!) a paid subscription, sharing it on social media or forwarding this email to someone who might enjoy it. Please also “like” this newsletter by clicking the ❤️ below (or sometimes above, depending on the platform), which helps us get visibility on the Substack network.