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Golden Emperor treasures every one of our privileged clients and we are devoted to strengthen and maintain our friendships, so we not only organize seminars and overseas investment trips to equip them with professional knowledge, but also entertaining events to take care of their personal well-being. Recently we invited top Stand-Up Comedians of the town, Vivek Mahbubani, Matina Leung and Tim Chan to do an evening show. The comedians brought together their unique brand of wit and attitude to tickle the funny bones of our valued guests, having more than 100 of them enjoyed the night wrapped up with humorous jokes, delicious snacks and flavorful drinks.

Above: More than 100 valuable guests roared with laughter after jokes cracked by Vivek Mahbubani

Above:  Every guest is enticingly mesmerized by the humorous atmosphere created by the comedians

Sansiri and BTS presented yet another highly-anticipated joint development – Khun by YOO, Inspired by Starck, to the buyers of Hong Kong. Being the first project in Bangkok that partners with the world’s most wide-ranging designer Philippe Starck, this project is deemed to be the residential destination for the trendsetter in town.

Khun by YOO inspired by Starck is located in mid-Thong Lo (Sukhumvit 55, Thong Lo 12), a trendsetting posh urban neighborhood that is often compared to Happy Valley of Hong Kong. The area boasts a wide array of fine restaurants and trendy bars that are the favourite hangout spots of the rich and famous. Apart from that, the area, similar to Happy Valley, is not served by the underground railway yet. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has confirmed construction of the new MRT Grey Line in 2014, with a station in mid-Thong Lo connecting with the BTS at Thong Lo station. Hence, Khun by YOO Inspired by Starck is not only a project that gives great aesthetic pleasure, it is also a project of promising investment potential that would grow in value.Golden Emperor hosted a seminar with partnership with Sansiri, Khun by YOO was launched at our event as well, the seminar attracting many customers attended over the weekend.

Above: Terence Chan, Director of Golden Emperor, provided a presentation on the Bangkok property market.

Above: Many investors attended the weekend exhibition.

Our team has spent considerable time studying Khun by YOO , if you are interested, please contact us. We may be able to arrange for one of our sales representatives to catch you up on what we have presented at the roadshow. Recent presentation topics included:

1. Familiarisation with key areas in Bangkok
2. Bangkok property market updates
3. Understanding foreign ownership of Thai properties
4. Exploring financing alternatives for foreigners
5. Buying and selling costs (i.e. taxes, stamp duty and etc)
6. Leasing and property management services
7. Specific unit recommendations
8. Booking process

Contact us by emailing us at contact @goldenemperor.com or calling us at (852) 3998 3003.  We look forward to hearing from you.

The government agreed yesterday to invoke the powerful Section 44 of the interim charter to speed up investment in the much-touted Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), unlocking limits and streamlining procedures regarding environmental impact assessments (EIAs) and the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Sansern Kaewkamnerd, a government spokesman, said using Section 44 to facilitate EEC investment was approved by the National Council for Peace and Order and acknowledged by the cabinet yesterday.

Mr Sansern said Section 44 will be applied over the next few days to shorten the EIA process for key investment projects at the EEC from two years to one, while the PPP process will be cut from 15-20 months to 8-9.

The National Environment Commission will be tasked with setting up a working committee which includes both foreign and domestic experts to vet the EIA report. Regarding the PPP process, Mr Sansern said Section 44 will only be applicable to urgent development projects like the 200-billion-baht U-tapao airport expansion; the 158-billion-baht Bangkok-Rayong high-speed train; the 88-billion-baht third phase of the Laem Chabang deep-sea port; and the 64.3-billion-baht double-track rail link between the three deep-sea ports of Bangkok, Laem Chabang and Map Ta Phut.

He said via Section 44, the government will also allow foreigners to hold more than a 50% share in an aviation maintenance centre covering 6,500 rai at U-tapao airport.

Earlier in April, the government similarly evoked Section 44 to allow international schools to open branches in the EEC without falling under the auspices of the Private Higher Education Institute Act and related rules and regulations of the Education Ministry. International educational institutes are considered instrumental to kick-starting the government’s desired educational reforms and strengthening Thailand’s competitiveness, as well as its research and development sector.

Foreign educational institutes will also be entitled to promotional privileges from the Board of Investment. But Section 44 requires an education development committee chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha be established to supervise the quality of the international educational institutes.

Mr Sansern said the cabinet yesterday also approved in principle the second draft bill on EEC development, which will later be submitted for reading to the Council of State. The first draft was approved by the cabinet last October.

Kalin Sarasin, chairman of Thai Chamber of Commerce, said he agreed with the government’s invocation of Section 44 to rev up development of the EEC. He said that the relevant provinces — Rayong, Chon Buri and Chachoengsao — are each still working independently on the project as their agendas entail specific development plans.

Mr Kalin said the government needed to speed up efforts to tackle issues related to rules and regulations regarding city planning and the EIA process, but noted that a clear action plan is also needed for each development project.

Chen Namchaisiri, chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries, said the business sector itself was reluctant to comment on whether it is appropriate for the government to use Section 44 as a special tool to rev up investment in the EEC, saying they have yet to see a clear plan on how invoking it will have the desired result.

The issue investors care the most about is legal succinctness and clarity, he said. “Whether you use Section 44 or the EEC law, everything should be written in a clear, transparent and succinct way to gain investors’ confidence,” said Mr Chen.

Source:Bangkok Post

Vietnam plans to open three special economic zones that offer investors greater incentives and fewer restrictions than available to date in the country, the investment minister said.Foreign direct investment, largely in manufacturing, has been key to Vietnam’s growth. It hit a record of $15.8 billion last year and has risen 6 percent in the first five months of 2017 from a year earlier.

The new economic zones will be in the north, center and south of the 1,650-km (1,000 mile) long country, Planning and Investment Minister Nguyen Chi Dung told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday.The ministry is drafting a law for the zones in northern Quang Ninh province, central Khanh Hoa province and southern Phu Quoc province. Approval from lawmakers in the communist state is expected by the end of 2017.

Dung said the zones would be free from local regulations to make them competitive internationally.”It will be a massive attraction to investment and investment will boom next year,” Dung said. “It will be outstanding in everything: free and favourable in every aspect.”Vietnam currently has 18 economic zones, offering incentives for investors from free tariffs in selected items to lower personal income tax or reduced rent and fees. There are another 325 state-supported industrial parks, which have fewer incentives.

A survey by ANZ Research last year said investors were broadly positive about the industrial parks because of tax incentives and the ease of customs clearance. Occupancy in operating industrial parks is more than 70 percent.Vietnam’s government this week reiterated its annual economic growth target at 6.7 percent, despite a drop to a three-year low of 5.1 percent in the first quarter. The government blamed the low rate on drought, salination issues and a temporary drop in production for Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) due to its Note 7 battery woes.

Dung said the government was confident of meeting its 2017 growth target given factors including improved weather, solid loan growth, a rise in tourism and rising numbers of new businesses.He expected Vietnam to continue drawing at least $10 billion a year in foreign direct investment for each of the next five years, while adding it was becoming more selective in the kind of investment sought. High tech and clean sectors are now a greater priority than low-cost industries, he said.

Source: thedailystar.net

Siam Park Bangkok Co, an amusement and theme park operator, will allocate 3 billion baht to build a retail and entertainment project in Bangkok this year in a bid to expand its customer base.

Noppagarn Luangamornlert, the company’s deputy managing director, said the budget will be used to develop “Bangkok City”, a retail and entertainment project on 70 rai of land near Siam Park City amusement and water park.

The project will be developed from this year. The idea is to reproduce Bangkok’s famous old towns and trade districts such as Chinatown, Sampheng and Khlong Thom. It will comprise 13 buildings, each one simulating an old town or trade district. It is expected to be completed by 2020.

Bangkok City is the brainchild of Chaiwat Luangamornlert, 79, who founded and managed Siam Park City over the past 37 years.

“Khun Chaiwat has dreamed of building Bangkok City for two decades, and his dream will finally come true with the creation of this masterpiece,” said Mrs Noppagarn.

The company will demolish its head office and ticket sales area in front of Siam Park’s entrance in the third quarter this year. It will spend 300 million baht on the first two-storey building, meant to house a customer service centre, a restaurant, seminar rooms for 50-250 people and a ticket office.

Construction of the first building is slated to be finished within two years. The other 12 buildings are intended to be retail and entertainment anchors. A night market will support the company’s plan to extend its service an extra three hours from 6pm.

Mrs Noppagarn, Mr Chaiwat’s daughter-in-law, said this is the first time Siam Park will branch out into retail and entertainment as it attempts to widen its customer base and boost sales in the long term.

“With the Bangkok City project, we expect Siam Park will be another entertainment destination for locals and the first place foreigners visit upon arrival in Thailand, and perhaps the last before leaving,” she said.

Some 85% of customers at Siam Park City are Thais, while foreigners come from the Middle East, India, Russia, China and Taiwan.

Mrs Noppagarn said the number of visitors to its amusement park in the first quarter this year is higher than the fourth quarter last year.

“The situation is not back to normal, but we are quite fortunate to get new customers from neighbouring countries,” she said.

The company has invested about 100 million baht to open the “Si-am Lagoon” slider in the water park zone, providing a ride house and a kid’s complex in the family area.

Teenage visitors at Siam Park City have recently doubled. More marketing activities such as concerts will be arranged to draw more youths this year.

The company expects its sales to grow 10% to 550 million baht this year.

Source: Bangkok Post