Category: The Bangkok Post

Beauty And The Beast is a much-loved classic that continues to fill the hearts of both new and returning audiences. Most remember this timeless romantic story with music when it was produced as an animation in 1991. The original Beauty And The Beast played for more than 13 years on Broadway, remaining to this day one of the top 10 longest-running shows and touring around 37 countries worldwide.

The remake Beauty And The Beast The Musical achieved phenomenal success between 2023 to 2025 in Australia across Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, with ticket sales surpassing a million.

Produced by Disney Theatrical Group and presented in Singapore by Base Entertainment Asia, audiences in Asia will have a chance to experience Beauty And The Beast The Musical when the show makes its only stop in Singapore at Sands Theatre, Marina Bay Sands, starting from Dec 11 for a limited period of time.

The lead roles are played by Australian actors — Shubshri Kandiah (Belle) and Brendan Xavier (The Beast). Kandiah is known for her captivating portrayal of Princess Jasmine in Disney’s Aladdin The Musical during its 2019 season, while Xavier won over audiences as Kristoff in Disney’s Frozen The Musical.

Audiences will be mesmerised by nostalgic songs like Belle, Gaston, Be Our Guest and the cherished title song Beauty And The Beast. The numbers were composed by Alan Menken and the lyrics were written by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice.

In this brand-new production, the enchanting tale has been reimagined with breathtaking new sets, costume designs and state-of-the-art technology to bring the timeless romance to life on stage with all the spectacle and grandeur audiences know and love.

The performance is 2 hours 30 minutes including a 20-minute intermission.

Ticket prices range between S$70 and S$1,200 (about 1,800 to 30,500 baht).

Re: “Anutin bans poker, sports gambling nationwide”, (BP, Oct 23). So, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has banned gambling again. The prohibition specifically aims at poker and other similar sports-themed card games. The Ministry of Tourism and Sport earlier classified poker only as a sport? Well, it’s not, is it — it’s a card game that is invariably played for money, unlike many others, such as bridge, which are not.

Nevertheless, the ban is not extended to horse racing in the capital. I’m sure, and of course, the elephant in the room, the “vice” that is deemed acceptable and a great funding source for government coffers — the lottery.

Maybe now, fans at cock fighting will desist from a wager and be content with just the aesthetic experience of two animals clawing themselves to death, or “high low” with the excitement of throwing three dice to see what the total is, without having a punt.

Ian Dann

Carbon confusion

Re: “Vegan future”, (PostBag, Oct 23).

I didn’t want to write any more here on PostBag, but when Jason Baker writes such unscientific information about the greenhouse effect of methane emissions from livestock that he must have Googled, I have to emphasise the scientific facts.

Methane emissions are often blamed for climate change, leading to harsh agricultural regulations that hurt farmers worldwide. Cattle and sheep, which naturally produce methane while digesting grass, have become targets of such policies.

Some countries now impose climate taxes and require feed additives like Bovaer to reduce methane. However, physicists William Happer and WA van Wijngaarden show in their paper “Methane and Climate” that methane’s warming effect is minimal — about one-tenth that of CO2. The study urges policymakers to stop exaggerating methane’s impact and to end unfair regulations that threaten farmers, who are essential to global food production.

Of course, everyone is free to eat vegan or not, but stop the war against farmers based on the climate ideology.

Anna Aarts

Oversight absent

Re: “Cabinet mulls easing zoning rules”, (Business, Oct 23).

The government wants to remove zoning for entertainment venues in order to benefit whom? Such establishments are meccas for human trafficking, drug distribution, illicit drug use, noise pollution, and criminal activity in general.

The police reap huge financial rewards in bribes, kickbacks, and even ownership of these establishments, and now the government wants a piece of the action from an increase in tax revenue.

Thai politicians should enshrine in the next charter a bulletproof means to exercise oversight and control of the police and the military. The zoning fiasco now in the hopper is merely an admission that no oversight exists and government officials prefer destroying quiet, peaceful residential communities rather than establishing the rule of law.

Michael Setter

Correction

A word in the head of the Oct 23 editorial lead should have read “cannon”, not “canon”. We apologise for such a glaring mistake.

Thailand should set an ambitious target of 45-60 million arrivals by the period of 2030 to 2035, pushing stakeholders to cooperate and keep pace with fast-growing Asia-Pacific tourism, says Galaxy Resorts Thailand.

“It’s not unthinkable to achieve those numbers with the right plan and growth strategy, as Asia-Pacific is the fastest growing tourism region worldwide and Thailand stands at the centre of that region,” said Kevin Clayton, chief brand officer of Galaxy Resorts Thailand.

Earlier this month, Tourism and Sports Minister Artthakorn Sirilatthayakorn said Thailand was no longer a “tourism giant” as he urged related stakeholders to adjust their working mindset.

Mr Clayton said foreign arrivals to Thailand this year are likely to number 33 million, below the pre-Covid level in 2019.

Having an ambitious target would make related tourism bodies and stakeholders become more progressive and inventive in working to achieve the goal, he said.

Although Thailand is known for its tourism assets such as hospitality, street food, beaches and historical sites, these are insufficient to drive the industry in the current context, said Mr Clayton.

Several recurring issues must be addressed, including ensuring safe travel, accessibility, digital marketing upgrades and curating unique experiences to target high-spending tourists, he said, which requires the right partnership between the public and private sectors to drive tourism forward.

ENTERTAINMENT TOURISM

As Thailand’s entertainment complex bill was shelved because the current government does not support it, Mr Clayton said Galaxy Resorts Thailand remains patient about its expansion in the country.

“When the new government is formed, hopefully there can be a process to advance thinking around integrated resorts. We would be more than happy to participate in that process,” he said, noting that man-made attractions can be a key supplement to Thai tourism.

Japan, the United Arab Emirates, the Philippines and Singapore are expecting new or expanded integrated resorts over the next few years, which will intensify competition in the region, said Mr Clayton.

Global entertainment tourism is estimated to tally US$267 billion by 2030, he said.

“If Thailand plans to compete with other countries in Asia, it needs to think through how it can headline major events and offer new man-made attractions,” said Mr Clayton.

Earlier this month, Galaxy Resorts brought Jackson Wang’s “Magicman 2” World Tour to Thailand.

The concerts spanned two days at Impact Arena and were sold out, with an audience of more than 24,000, underlining Thailand’s place as a top entertainment destination.

The company also supports Jackson Wang concerts at Galaxy Arena at Galaxy Resorts Macau.

The Macau resort comprises nine hotels featuring more than 5,000 rooms, suites and villas, with roughly 16% of its revenue derived from the non-gaming segment.

Regarding Thailand’s 300-baht tourism tax scheme, which the tourism and sports minister plans to revisit, Mr Clayton said such a fee is already implemented at other destinations.

Before levying this fee, he said several factors should be considered, such as the collection method and timing to avoid denting traveller sentiment.

The government should also ensure the fund will be used effectively for insurance and infrastructure improvement, said Mr Clayton.

The explosive revelations and allegations of regional cybercrimes and scam networks have hit Thailand head-on and placed the government of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul in an awkward and defensive position. As more facts surrounding what looks like a labyrinthine cross-border multibillion-dollar transnational criminal ring come to light, more questions have surfaced with no clear answers. The Anutin government needs to come clean and avoid a “scam-gate” of cover-ups and lies at the expense of countless scammed victims across many countries.

Among the many questions and issues that have been raised, first and foremost is the role and possible involvement of senior government officials. That Deputy Finance Minister Vorapak Tanyawong has resigned in the wake of allegations linking him to BIC Bank in Cambodia, founded by controversial Cambodian businessman Yim Leak, only leads people to ask valid questions. What was the nature of Mr Vorapak’s relationship with Yim Leak?

And then there is the question of governance standards and equality under the law. Srettha Thavisin, the prime minister in 2023-24, was ousted by the Constitutional Court for ethical misconduct for a minor cabinet reshuffle involving a junior minister who had been convicted and jailed for six months on bribery charges. Pichit Cheunban, the junior minister in question, resigned as soon as the controversy came to light, but prosecution still proceeded and led to Mr Srettha’s removal on “morality and ethics” in Section 258 of the 2017 Constitution enacted during the military government.

Although Mr Vorapak has quit the government, should he still face misconduct investigations? If the same morality and ethics standards are applied to Mr Vorapak’s case with equally vigorous prosecution of constitutional requirements, should Mr Anutin not come under similar scrutiny?

These are uneasy questions that will likely be left unattended. When under a critical spotlight and faced with alleged wrongdoings, the powerful and privileged everywhere tend to feign innocence and ignorance in equal measure and issue repeated denials. In Thailand, they go further by threatening and actually launching lawsuits, often known as SLAPP, or Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation.

Because the justice system and judicial odds have become stacked against truthtellers, muckrakers, and whistleblowers, silence and self-censorship tend to prevail to the benefit of wrongdoers. People become tame and timid out of fear for good reason because truth-tellers have demonstrably suffered in the recent past. One glaring case was a senior police officer who went after human trafficking in the deep South only to be hounded by underworld bosses and chased into asylum in Australia.

In view of scam centres, associated fraud, trafficking, drugs, and money-laundering among cyber-criminal networks, it should be open season for investigative journalism. Muckraking can be a great challenge for professional achievements and good business for daring journalists. In this case, Thailand’s media professionals have been disappointing and shameful for not asking hard and probing questions for the public interest. Instead, intrepid journalism came from outside, a former reporter with the Wall Street Journal. In addition, stalwart MPs of the opposition People’s Party have had to conduct investigative journalism in exposing shady dealings among cybercriminals.

It is a worrying trend that Thailand’s oversight and checks-and-balance agencies and institutions are not doing their jobs. Where are Thailand’s Anti-Money Laundering Office, Anti-Corruption Commission, and Auditor General’s Office? When it was their cue to go after political parties and politicians, they seemed keen and eager. But now we are likely to see a glacial pace and perfunctory pursuits of criminal wrongdoing.

Given the ongoing Thai-Cambodian border dispute, Mr Anutin appears to have been currying nationalist sentiments for political advantages, possibly for electoral gains ahead of the planned poll next year. Here is an opportunity to paint Cambodia as the culprit country and vortex of a global underworld beset with criminal scammers, money-launderers, human and drug traffickers, online betting agents, and transnational criminals of all stripes. But Mr Anutin seems less than enthusiastic. Even though he has lately pledged to crack down on these transnational crimes, it bears scrutiny whether any big fish will be caught or whether he will buy and bide time in the hope of letting the scandal quieten and blow over.

To be sure, what we are seeing with Mr Vorapak’s resignation and denial involving Yim Leak and BIC Bank may be just the tip of the iceberg. The backdrop of scam networks has other controversial figures, such as Chen Zhi, who is chairman of the Prince Group and Hun To of Huione Group, along with Benjamin Mauerberger, allegedly the key conduit among these criminal gangs. The Thai connections to these obscure figures and business outfits likely extend wide and deep.

The United States Treasury Department has already frozen nearly 500 billion baht of the Prince Group’s and Mr Chen’s crypto and other financial assets on cyberfraud, human trafficking and money laundering charges. The United Kingdom has similarly taken over the real estate assets of Mr Chen. The key country in this mix is South Korea, and its sanctions on Cambodia-based online scam networks. The South Korean government has explicitly stated that it will deploy all means necessary to rescue and safeguard its citizens who have been duped and harmed by scammers based in Cambodia.

Without South Korea, the US and UK could be dismissed for being part of some Western conspiracy against Cambodia. But South Korea is a country that Southeast Asians deeply respect and want to be like. Seoul’s intervention is what’s needed to maintain pressure and ensure further exposure and prosecution.

But the current Thai government seems to want this kind of pressure to go away. That the Prince Group has reportedly rented space from the prime minister’s Sino-Thai office building does not bode well. If Mr Anutin does not own up to all that Thai officials and businesspeople have to do with the expanding trail of corruption, fraud, and transnational criminal networks, his government’s longevity could be at risk and even end up shorter than the short four-month timeframe.

Thitinan Pongsudhirak, PhD, is professor at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Political Science and a senior fellow at its Institute of Security and International Studies in Bangkok.

Thai actress Chermarn “Ploy” Boonyasak has spoken publicly for the first time about her battle with stage 2 breast cancer and subsequent mental health crisis, describing the past year as the most difficult of her life.

In an interview on the Sisterhood podcast on Mirror Thailand’s YouTube channel, Ploy revealed she was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer that had spread to her lymph nodes after delaying a follow-up appointment for 18 months due to a fear of needles.

The diagnosis coincided with severe personal and financial difficulties. Combined stress and oestrogen-suppressing medication triggered a mental health breakdown. Ploy lost 13 kilogrammes in three months, experienced memory loss, severe depression, and panic attacks. At her lowest, she engaged in self-harm and required psychiatric hospitalisation.

She underwent breast-preserving surgery followed by 25 radiation sessions. Doctors opted against chemotherapy, prescribing hormone-blocking medication instead, which she continues to take. She kept her diagnosis private, only telling close friends after surgery.

Now recovering, Ploy has regained 8kg and exercises four days weekly. Recent health checks show no abnormalities. She has eliminated processed foods from her diet and adopted healthier lifestyle habits.

Speaking during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Ploy encouraged others to prioritise self-love, reflecting that her goal now is to love herself as much as she once loved others. She attributes her cancer partly to irregular eating, excessive red meat consumption, late nights and high stress, acknowledging she is still healing but has regained her sense of self.

A Thai and a German diver have been rescued after a search party found them on a rock off Racha Noi island.

The Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre Region 3 said the two were located on Thursday after a four-hour search by Tor 272, a naval patrol boat, and other vessels.

The centre reported the divers went missing at 1.30pm while diving off the island in Muang district. The centre did not explain why they could not be contacted, saying only that they were transported back to the island on the navy ship.

The names of the divers were not given.

Commerce Minister Suphajee Suthumpun is heading to Malaysia and South Korea for the Asean-Apec meetings from today till Nov 1.

Ms Supajee is scheduled to attend two major regional forums to promote Thailand’s economic, trade and investment cooperation amid shifting geopolitical dynamics.

From today to Tuesday, she will join the 26th Asean Economic Community Council and the 47th Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur.

The meetings, hosted by Malaysia, aim to strengthen Asean’s resilience against global uncertainties and advance the Asean Digital Economy Framework Agreement, which is a key step towards building a technology-driven regional economy.

The commerce minister will also hold bilateral talks with trade ministers from Asean members, including those from Malaysia and Indonesia, to boost trade and agricultural exports.

While in Kuala Lumpur, she will present Thai SELECT — a government certification recognising authentic and high-quality Thai restaurants — and launch a caravan to enhance global recognition of Thai cuisine.

At the 47th Asean Summit, Ms Supajee will sign two key trade agreements, including the Asean-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA 3.0).

Afterwards, she will travel to Gyeongju in South Korea for the Apec Ministerial Meeting and the Apec Economic Leaders’ Meeting alongside Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul from Oct 29 to Nov 1.

Ms Supajee will deliver Thailand’s statement under the theme “Connect”, emphasising stronger regional integration including economy, trade and investment to tackle various challenges, as the nation steps up regional diplomacy.

Ratchaburi FC finally ended their barren spell in the AFC Champions League Two, producing a commanding performance to crush Eastern SC of Hong Kong 5-1 at Dragon Solar Park on Wednesday night.

The star of the night was Brazilian forward Denilson Pereira Junior, who delivered a dazzling hat-trick that electrified the home supporters and propelled Ratchaburi into third place in Group F and kept their knockout stage hopes alive.

For Eastern, the result marked a fourth consecutive defeat, leaving them stranded at the bottom of the standings with little to cheer about.

The Dragons wasted no time stamping their authority on the contest.

Barely two minutes after kick-off, Denilson slipped a clever through ball to Tana Chanabut, who calmly slotted home to hand the hosts an early advantage.

Ratchaburi continued to press, and their persistence paid off again in the 39th minute. Jesse Curran surged down the right flank before squaring across goal for Denilson, who finished from close range to double the lead.

At half-time, the scoreboard read 2-0, and the home side looked firmly in control.

The second half only underlined Ratchaburi’s superiority.

In the 49th minute, Denilson broke free of the defence and coolly beat the goalkeeper for his second of the evening.

Just seven minutes later, Njiva provided the assist for Denilson to complete his hat-trick, stretching the margin to 4-0 and sending the crowd into raptures.

Eastern managed a brief response in the 74th minute when Yu Okubo headed in a consolation goal, but Ratchaburi had the final say. With one minute of normal time remaining, Singapore international Ikhsan Fandi added a fifth, sealing a comprehensive 5-1 triumph.

The victory handed Ratchaburi their first three points of the campaign and renewed optimism in their push to progress from Group F.

Eastern, by contrast, remain winless and face an uphill battle to restore pride in the matches ahead.

Port face Kirins

Port will host Muang Thong United in the Thai League 1 today.

Port, under coach Alexandre Gama, have won their last two matches and are currently fifth in the 16-team league standings.

Gama will have a fully fit squad led by Peeradol Chamrasamee, Worachit Kanitsribumphen and Suphanan Bureerat.

Muang Thong, coached by Rangsan Viwatchaichok, will be desperate for a victory after three successive draws.

US President Donald Trump is aiming for a quick win in a pivotal Thursday meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, even if the outcome falls short of the sweeping deal he’s teased on issues at the heart of the rivalry between the world’s two largest economies

Ahead of the sit-down, the US president said he wants to extend a pause on higher tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for Xi resuming American soybean purchases, cracking down on fentanyl and backing off restrictions on rare-earth exports – all while maintaining some trade barriers he sees as essential.

‘We’ll make a deal on, I think, everything,’ Trump told reporters this week.

Trump has also floated an elusive agreement on nuclear weapons and expressed a desire to convince Xi to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to end his invasion of Ukraine, an outcome that would burnish Trump’s peacemaking credentials on the heels of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Yet Trump’s pursuit of deals often emphasises style over substance, and analysts expect any agreement reached at their South Korea summit would simply dial down tensions following weeks of escalating threats, trade retaliation and harsh rhetoric – far from a sweeping accord that addresses core conflicts. The US president departs on Friday for a three-nation tour of Asia.

‘Both sides are clearly seeking stability in the relationship,’ said Henrietta Levin, a former White House China adviser now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. ‘But stability on whose terms is an open question, and one where I think unfortunately Beijing is holding the cards.’

Trump’s thirst for a result he can sell as a victory runs the risk he might bow to key Chinese demands, including access to advanced semiconductors and the status of the self-governing island of Taiwan – the president notably has not ruled out such compromises.

Still, it’s improbable the US leader will concede much ground on those points, given the national-security and domestic-political pitfalls. That diminishes the chances of a grand bargain that would assure markets a trade war won’t materialise. The two nations’ current tariff understanding is expiring in November.

Trump’s negotiating style is also fundamentally different than Xi’s. While the US president often takes a transactional approach, using leverage to secure short-term wins, the Chinese leader relies on long-term thinking buttressed by his country’s manufacturing and natural-resources advantages.

Trump has insisted China must back down from severe export curbs that underscore Beijing’s leverage as the world’s dominant supplier and processor of rare-earth materials used in mobile phones, semiconductors and other technology.

But Xi sees its rare-earth dominance as a critical strategic advantage, making it doubtful he would back down without major compromises from the United States.

China’s leverage isn’t ‘a simple bargaining chip,’ which makes it nearly impossible for Beijing to yield to Trump’s demands, said Sun Chenghao, a fellow at the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University. ‘Reversing such a policy would require a monumental concession from the US, likely involving a rollback of its own tech sanctions, which is currently politically untenable in Washington,’ he added.

Indeed, Washington is weighing moves in the other direction – intensifying restrictions on exports of equipment containing American software to China, with curbs that could ensnare sales of computers, engines and other goods.

Hawks worry

The developments have heightened risks for economies throughout Asia – including those that have also been targeted by Trump’s tariffs, despite being seen as important US allies in corralling China’s rise. Trump is set to swing through three of them – Malaysia, Japan and South Korea – in the coming days.

Some China hawks in Washington worry that Trump’s penchant for dealmaking, and his desire to secure purchase commitments and other trade victories, could drive once politically unthinkable national-security concessions, including a departure from the longstanding US policy of strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan.

China has asked the White House to officially declare it ‘opposes’ Taiwanese independence, and Trump has acknowledged the island is likely to be on the table in the coming talks. Taiwan probably is ‘the apple of his eye,’ Trump said of Xi earlier this week.

‘President Trump doesn’t have conventional views on Taiwan and has been notably more lukewarm in his support for Taiwan, especially compared to his predecessors,’ said Patricia Kim, who co-leads the Global China Project at the Brookings Institution, adding that it’s possible Beijing could ‘see this as an area where it could push Trump to cut a deal, or to be transactional if Trump could get something in return.’

Tensions renewed

Both sides dispute what kicked off the latest escalation. Americans allege it was China’s expansive new export curbs. Beijing, meanwhile, argues Washington reneged on a promise by expanding sanctions to include subsidiaries of blacklisted companies.

What’s followed has been a flurry of widened punishments and new trade threats. China sanctioned American units of South Korean shipping giant Hanwha Ocean Co. for allegedly assisting a US trade investigation into Beijing’s maritime might. Trump raised the specter of slapping an additional 100% tariff on Chinese goods by Nov 1 and curbing imports of used cooking oil from China.

The trade fight is testing both countries’ tolerance for economic pain. Tariffs have hiked prices of US consumer goods and impinged on China’s access to its largest single export market. Trump conceded last week his threatened tariffs were ‘not sustainable.’

Still, Trump has economic leverage because China needs the US market more, argued Steve Yates, a senior research fellow with the Heritage Foundation. ‘They may have overestimated their tolerance for pain and disruption,’ he said.

The president is scheduled to arrive in Malaysia – his first stop on the trip – early Sunday morning, local time, for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit. Trump is slated to hold a bilateral meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and attend an Asean leaders dinner on Sunday evening, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

The president will depart on Monday for Tokyo, ahead of a Tuesday meeting with new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Trump is scheduled to fly to South Korea on Wednesday, where he will meet with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, deliver a keynote address at the Apec CEO luncheon and participate in a working dinner with other leaders attending the summit.

Other deals

Though the focus of Trump’s trip has remained centered on his Xi meeting, other trade negotiations hang in the balance with South Korea, India and Brazil. Even the terms of a $550 billion investment fund Japan committed in a successful bid to lower tariffs haven’t been honed – presenting a potential test for Takaichi.

Similarly, it’s unclear whether Trump and South Korea’s Lee will finalise a broad trade framework, which included a pledge to invest $350 billion in the US. No trade agreements are expected to be signed with Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified to freely discuss the deliberations.

Trump may meet with Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, whose country was targeted with 50% tariffs on goods shipped to the US, and seal a truce in a long-running border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia with a ceremony at the Asean summit.

William Chou, a Japan analyst at the Hudson Institute, said shoring up agreements with US partners would strengthen Trump’s hand with Xi.

‘If the aim is still to try and strike an effective deal with Beijing,’ he said, ‘you might as well strengthen your leverage as best you can.’

Commerce Minister Suphajee Suthumpun is seeking to increase trade and investment cooperation between Thailand and Singapore, especially regarding rice exports.

Ms Suphajee said the matter was discussed with Singaporean Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong via video conference on Wednesday.

The conversation covered expanding trade, investment and the regional digital economy, she said, adding it also concluded a rice trading agreement.

Ms Suphajee said she was also seeking to conclude the Asean Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), which would support the region’s digital economy.

She said the meeting was also held to emphasise Thailand’s readiness in strengthening cooperation with Singapore.

Thailand has the potential to export quality agricultural products not just to meet demands in Singapore but also expand to other markets around the world, she added.

Both countries have concluded a rice trade agreement, a major step for Thailand’s rice export and food security for both Thailand and Singapore, she said.

Tangible results from the deal are expected to be seen as soon as next month, Ms Suphajee said.

Regarding the DEFA, she said Thailand, as chair of the negotiation, had asked for Singapore’s support for the implementation of the framework.

DEFA is one of Asean’s major economic agendas this year, said Ms Suphajee, adding it will create a digital connection within Asean, supporting seamless cross-border and paperless trade. It will also increase Thailand’s and Asean’s trade competitiveness and be a tool for the business sector to pursue digital trade, she noted.

According to the ministry, the trade value between Thailand and Singapore rose to US$17.7 billion in 2024. Thailand exported $10.36 billion worth of goods to Singapore, and it imported $7.40 billion, resulting in a surplus of $2.97 billion, it said.

During the first eight months of 2025, the total trade value had reached $12.14 billion, up 6.25% year-on-year, the ministry said. Thai exports meanwhile rose 12.57% to $7.21 billion, while imports from Singapore decreased 1.81% to $4.92 billion, it added.