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[Archives of Easy Business English]
Thaksin faces 16 billion
baht in back taxes
for using offshore tax
shelters and kids as
proxies
By Jon Fernquest
 46
billion of Thaksin's 76 billion baht in assets was seized in the recent
Thaksin assets seizure
trial.
It looks like the
remaining 30 billion will be subject to 16 billion baht in back taxes.
That is the subject of
today's article which begins after the vocabulary.
back taxes - taxes
from the past that a person or company did not paid to the government
offshore - outside
the country that you live in
taxshelter - a
place where people keep their money to avoid paying taxes
proxy – a
person or company who acts for another person or company ตัวแทน
seizure - the
act of taking control of something, especially by using power or force
การบุกเข้ายึด
assets - things owned, especially property and money
สินทรัพย์ (See Economist
glossary)
Economics
B16bn in back taxes sought
for Ample Rich
transactions
Share ownership at
heart of case
15/03/2010
Wichit
Chantanusornsiri
The Revenue Department
expects it will be able to claim up to 16 billion baht in back
taxes from the Shinawatras in a closely watched case related to the
2006 sale of the family's holdings in Shin Corp to Singapore's
Temasek Holdings.
The tax bill comes after the Supreme Court
late last month ordered the seizure of 46 billion baht in assets from
former premier Thaksin Shinawatra's family
on corruption grounds. Immediately after the ruling, the Revenue Department moved
to place a hold on the 30 billion baht in assets returned to the
Shinawatra family by the court. The case is now pending before the Tax Court.
Ample Rich - the
holding corporation that the Thaksin family used for selling Shin Corp
transaction - a business
dealing, the buying and of something การติดต่อทางธุรกิจ
claim,
claim money - make a request for money (saying that money
should be paid to you for some reason)
holdings - things that you own
bill - a proposed law before there is a vote on
turning it into a law
premier - prime minister
corruption - (See Wikipedia
on bribery,
corporate corruption, and political
corruption)
grounds - reasons for what you say or do
บนมูลเหตุว่า บนพื้นฐานว่า
ruling - a decision by a court of law คำตัดสิน
คำชี้ขาด
pending - waiting to be dealt with, settled or
completed ยังค้างอยู่, ซึ่งยังไม่จบสิ้น, อยู่ในระหว่าง
In January 2006, the
family sold its 49% share in Shin to Temasek for 73.3
billion baht. To facilitate the share sale, Ample Rich,
an offshore holding company set up by Thaksin, sold 329.2 million Shin
shares to his children Panthongtae and Pinthongta at one baht each on
Jan 20. Three days later, the two siblings sold the Shin shares to
Temasek through the Stock Exchange of Thailand for 49.25 baht per
share.
While share sales
through the SET are exempt from capital gains taxes, the Revenue Department has
stated that the transaction between Ample Rich and Mr Panthongtae and
Ms Pinthongta does represent a taxable transaction.
share
- to have or use something at the same time as someone else ใช้ร่วมกัน
facilitate - help, support, make it easier for
project to achieve goals ทำให้ง่าย to make it possible or easier for
something to happen ทำให้สะดวกขึ้น
exempt - not have to do something
capital - money invested in a business (See glossary)
capital gains
taxes - tax paid on the increase in value of an asset
(such as land, house, building, stock shares)
represent - be an example of
X represents Y
- X is an example of Y
Under the tax code, the two can be liable for back taxes of up to 16
billion baht, including penalties and interest charges dating back to the original
transaction.
The Revenue
Department, in its ruling against the Shinawatra family, cited a 1992 case where a company
director receiving stock options at a price below market value
is
liable for taxes on any gains. In the Shinawatra case, both
siblings were also directors of Ample
Rich, set up in 1999 in the British
Virgin Islands,
and thus is subject to tax for the realised gain of 48.25 baht per share from
the sale to Temasek.
code
- rules of proper behaviour for a particular job, organisation, etc.
มาตรการ, กฎเกณฑ์, ระเบียบ
tax code
- the book with the country's tax laws in it
liable - legally responsible for causing damage or
injury มีความรับผิดชอบตามกฎหมาย
penalties - punishment for breaking a law or rule
บทลงโทษ
interest - payments made for the use of another's
money for a period of time
charges - a payment that has to be made for
something เงินที่เรียกเก็บ
cited - mentioned (to support a point you are making
or arguing) กล่าวถึง
stock - an amount of something that you keep so that
you can use it when you need it ที่เก็บไว้ในสต๊อก
options - the right to buy an asset before a given
date (See Economist
Glossary on derivatives and Wikipedia)
ทางเลือกที่ทำได้
siblings -
brothers and sisters
British Virgin Islands -
a set of islands in the Caribbean owned by Great Britain that is a
famous offshore tax haven (See Wikipedia)
offshore - outside
the country that you live in
tax haven, taxshelter - a
place where people keep their money to avoid paying taxes (See Wikipedia)
realised - achieved, when what was planned
is completed ทำให้เป็นจริง
realised gain
- profit, money that you made, money earned
Tax officials say that
while the Shinawatra siblings may argue that Ample Rich is an offshore
company and that the share transaction occurred overseas, the Revenue
Department's position is that the transaction involved shares of a Thai
company and is thus subject to local taxes.
In addition, tax
officials say Ample Rich was established solely as a securities holding vehicle rather than as an ongoing business concern.
local
- in or related to the area that you live, or to the particular area
that you are talking about ท้องถิ่น
established - be in a successful position over a
long period of time มีตำแหน่งที่มั่นคง
established - has existed for a long time ก่อตั้่ง
ongoing - happening at the present moment;
continuing ไม่หยุดยั้ง, ต่อเนื่อง
business concern
- a business
Interestingly, the tax
case hinges on the assumption that Mr Panthongtae and Ms
Pinthongta were the actual owners of the Shin shares,
rather than serving as proxies for their father.
But the Supreme Court,
in its ruling, said that the Shin shares - as held through Ample Rich -
actually belonged to Thaksin during his time as prime minister and thus
represented a personal conflict of interest when he enacted policies benefiting the
companies.
X hinges on Y - X
depends on Y (what happens with Y will determine what happens with X)
assumption - something that you consider likely to
be true even though you have no proof ข้อสันนิษฐาน
actual - real; existing in fact จริง
proxies - working for or on behalf of other people
(helping them do business or own things)
conflict
of interest - when
your personal interests conflict with your duty to the public in your
job (See Wikipedia)
enacted - made a proposal into a law ยื่นร่างกฎหมาย
If the Tax Court
follows a similar line of
reasoning
- that the shares held through Ample Rich belonged to Thaksin
all along
right up to the purchase by Temasek - the transaction
between the holding
company
and the two Shinawatra children should not be classified as a taxable transaction.
But the Shinawatra
family has never made this argument before the Tax Court, with
both Mr Panthongtae and Ms Pinthongta insisting that they were the legitimate owners of the Shin shares
prior to the sale to Temasek.
Legal observers say
this is because admitting that the two children were proxies for their
father, while a potentially winning defence in the tax case, would open
Thaksin to other criminal charges related to share concealment and false asset declarations while serving as
prime minister.
a line of reasoning - an
argument (a series of reasons to make a decision, judgement or
conclusion)
all along - all
the time, from the beginning to the end
line - position; a way of dealing with or thinking
about something or someone
purchase - buying something
holding company - a
company that owns other companies (doesn't do any business itself)
classify - put
similar people or things (with same features) into the same group
argument - a reason or reasons why you support or
oppose an idea or suggestion เหตุผล
insisting - keeping saying very firmly that
something is true, even when other people will not believe you ยืนกราน
legitimate - correct according to the law
ที่ถูกต้องตามกฎหมาย reasonable and acceptable ถูกต้องสมควร
potentially - possible in the future
ที่อาจเกิดขึ้นได้ may happen, possible เป็นไปได้
defence - something you say to support someone or
something that is being criticised or charged การปกป้อง การแก้ต่าง
concealment - hiding ซุก ซ่อน
asset - something owned by a person, company etc.,
particularly money and property ทรัพย์สิน
(Source: B16bn in back taxes sought for Ample Rich
transactions,
Share ownership at heart of case, 15/03/2010, Wichit Chantanusornsiri, link)
New manual to document predatory lending practices
of Thai loan sharks
By Jon Fernquest
 Loan sharks employ
tactics
such as
confusing
borrowers
to make more money off of them.
The Thai government is
preparing a manual to increase public
awareness
about these tactics.
Last month the Bangkok
Post featured an
investigative report
on how loan sharks operate (Read article).
So many questions
remain about how they operate.
Is there such a thing
as a non-performing
loan in
the loan shark world or do loan sharks harass, threaten or even kill until
borrowers pay up?
Read previous articles
on Thailand's new program to wean
borrowers off of
loan sharks: #1 and #2.
Also read previous
articles on related consumer
protection laws:
overview, medical
malpractice,
used
cars, telecommunications, fitness
centers.
Today's article begins
after the the vocabulary.
loan sharks - people
who offer loans at high interest rates often backed by violence or
blackmail (See Wikipedia)
confuse
- make it difficult for someone to know exactly what is happening
employ - use
tactics - methods
used to achieve goals in a situation
(for example: military
tactics)
confusing
- when it is difficult to know what is happening or what to do
investigate (verb)
- try to find out what happened in a situation or event
investigative (adjective)
investigative report - a
newspaper or magazine article (or TV segment) written by an
investigative journalist
investigative journalism -
a story involving crime, political corruption, or a scandal that
requires a great amount of research to come up with facts that might be
hidden, buried, or obscured by people who have a vested interest in
them (See Wikipedia)
investigative journalist - a
person who does investigative journalism as their job
non-performing loan (NPL) - a
loan that the borrower is not paying back (or very late paying back)
harass - to
cause trouble and problems for other people, to annoy other people
pay up - pay the
money you owe to another person
wean off - get
people to stop doing something (example: wean the small baby off her
mother's milk)
consumer protection laws - laws
that try to protect consumers from being cheated by businesses
กฎหมายคุ้มครองผู้บริโภค
medical malpractice -
when a doctor injures a patient through a careless mistake, violation
of medical standards (See Wikipedia)
การปฏิบัติหน้าที่ด้วยความบกพร่อง
That is the topic in
today's article from the Bangkok Post below.
FINANCE
Loan advice warns about
shark attack
12/03/2010
King-oua Laohong
The Justice Ministry
is drafting a manual to inform people of their legal rights and specifically to prevent them being taken
advantage of by loan sharks.
Deputy permanent secretary for justice Thawee Sodsong yesterday chaired a meeting of representatives from
agencies involved in the ministry's bid to solve loan shark problems.
drafting
- writing
manual - a book that shows you how to do something
คู่มือ
inform - tell people about what happened, report new
information to people who don't know about it yet
rights - what the law allows you to have and do
สิทธิ์ (See Wikipedia)
specifically... - one example or reason...
taken advantage of - to cheat
someone so you can get something from them
loan - an amount of money that a person, business or
country borrows เงินกู้
permanent - happening or existing for a long time or
for all time in the future ถาวร
justice - when people are treated fairly
and equally (See Wikipedia)
ความเป็นธรรม, ความถูกต้อง, ความยุติธรรม
meeting - when a group of people come together to
discuss issues and make decisions การประชุม
chaired a meeting
- lead or was the head of a meeting
bid - an attempt to do something ความพยายาม
They met to draft a manual on what people
should know about predatory lending practices and their legal rights
related to debts owed to lenders outside the mainstream financial system.
Pol Col Thawee said he
had visited several provinces to look into loan shark problems and
found most victims lacked understanding about
the laws related to money lending.
draft
- to write a document, plan, etc. that may be changed before it is
finally accepted ร่าง
predatory -
eager to gain from the weakness or suffering of others
lending - giving money to someone who agrees to pay
it back in the future การให้ยืม
practices - ways of doing commonly repeated tasks
mainstream - ordinary ทางหลัก what is currently
typical or normal ที่กำลังได้รับความนิยมหรือแนวโน้มที่สำคัญ
financial system - the system of banks, stock
markets, etc that allows the transfer of money between savers and
borrowers and between investors and businesses that finance their
operations and expansion (See Wikipedia)
victims - people who are killed injured or harmed in
some way from an accident, natural disaster, crime, etc.
He also said many
lenders had made the lending process complicated in order to confuse borrowers
into breaking the loan conditions.
Some lenders tricked
or forced borrowers to sign loan contracts stating an exaggerated borrowing amount.
process
- a series of actions that you take in order to achieve a result
แนวทางปฏิบัติ, กระบวน, วิธีการ
complicated - has so many parts connected in
different ways that
it is difficult to understand (for example, a complicated machine or a
city with a complicated system of streets) ที่ซับซ้อน
contract - a written (or oral) agreement that is
legally binding สัญญา
exaggerated - saying more than is actually true
In one case, a
borrower took out a 5,000 baht loan but was forced to sign a contract saying he borrowed 15,000
baht.
Pol Col Thawee said
the Justice Ministry's Justice Fund would help borrowers by appointing lawyers to represent them in legal cases filed by or against loan shark
lenders.
sign
a contract - put your name on a written contract thus
agreeing to do as it says
appointing - when
an authority places some person in a position in an organisation
represent - to act, speak or be present officially
for another person or people เป็นตัวแทน
legal cases, court cases
- คดี
an argument, or breaking of the law that a court will decide on, ordering people
to pay money, serve time in jail, or act or not act in some way
filed - to take official action, e.g., to make a
formal complaint ยื่นฟ้องร้อง
Once the manual was
complete, the ministry would send out teams of
officials to educate loan shark victims, beginning with those in the
provinces with the highest
incidence of
loan sharking, Pol Col Thawee said.
Many loan shark
borrowers have been found to be employees of state enterprises, often the electricity
generating agencies and the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority.
ministry
- a government department dealing with an area of activity กระทรวง
highest incidence of
- highest amount of (have the most of this kind of activity)
state - government รัฐ
enterprises - companies
A lot of the money
lenders are local politicians, such as members of provincial
assemblies,
and civil servants, the deputy permanent secretary said.
Pol Col Thawee said
agencies were also studying the consumer protection
law and
figuring out ways it could be enforced more effectively against illegal lenders.
local
- in or related to the area that you live, or to the particular area
that you are talking about ท้องถิ่น
politicians -
"an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making.
This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government,
and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup
d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest, right of inheritance
(see also: divine right) or other means" (See Wikipedia)
provincial assemblies -
the group of elected representatives (legislature) in a province that
make decisions for the government of the province
legislature - the
group of elected people in the government who create the laws of a
country, province or city (See Wikipedia)
civil servants
- permanent government workers
deputy - a person who is given the power to do
something instead
of another person, or the person whose rank is immediately below that
of the leader of an organisation รอง, ตัวแทน,ผู้รักษาการแทน
consumer - someone who buys and uses goods and
services ผู้บริโภค
consumer protection
law - special laws to protect consumers from being
cheated when they are sold goods and services (See Wikipedia)
enforce - when
the police or other authorities make sure people and companies follow
the law by punishing them if they do not
effectively
- working well and producing the results that they wanted
illegal - against the law ผิดกฎหมาย
(Source: Loan advice warns about shark
attack, 12/03/2010, King-oua Laohong, link)
Thailand's new trade
opportunities with Indonesia
under the new Asean
Free Trade Area (AFTA)
By Jon Fernquest
 Thailand's
new trade opportunities with Indonesia under the new Asean Free
Trade Area (Afta)
starting this year was discussed in this week's Asia Focus section in the Bangkok Post
on Monday.
Today's article starts below.
Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA) - the
grouping of Southeast Asian states working together to make trading in
the region easier (Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand. Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia) (See Wikipedia)
Economics
ASIA FOCUS
Bright future for Thai
exports to Indonesia seen under Afta
8/03/2010
Thailand's exports to
Indonesia will benefit from tariff cuts under the Asean Free
Trade Area (Afta)
as well as the outstanding growth of the Indonesian
economy, which has led all countries in Asia except China, despite the impact of the global economic slowdown.
Indonesia is an interesting market for Thai exporters not only because
it is the largest in Asean but also because it is part of the same
production chain as the Thai economy,
according to Kasikorn
Research Center.
benefit
- to get help or an advantage from something ผลประโยชน์
tariff - tax on imports
outstanding - very great and noticeable, amazing
impact - an effect or influence ผลกระทบ
global - throughout the world ทั่วโลก
chain - a group of businesses (restaurants, hotels,
etc.) owned by the same company บริษัทต่างๆที่อยู่ในเครือเดียวกัน
Kasikorn Research Center
- Thailand's top private economic research center (See website)
In
addition, the Indonesian economy has been able to grow impressively
because of its relatively low reliance on the export sector, while the Jakarta government
has been continuously injecting money to stimulate activity. Interest rates in
Indonesia remain high at 6.5%, though that figure is a full three percentage
points
lower than the rate the central bank had a year earlier.
As a result,
domestic consumption instead of exports is the
major driver of the Indonesian economy, accounting for about 61% of GDP, which grew by 5.4% in the
fourth quarter of 2009.
reliance - need for
something
sector - a part of the economy (public sector =
government,
private sector = all businesses, household sector = families and
consumers, banking sector,...) (See Wikipedia)
stimulate - act so as to increase activity กระตุ้น
encourage activity, growth, and development (See glossary)
figure - an amount of money จำนวนเงิน
three percentage points -
1.0% ("three percentage points lower" = 3.0%)
rate - the level or speed at which something happens
or changes,
or the amount or number of times it happens or changes in a particular
period อัตรา
central bank
- the main bank in a country that controls the supply of
money and credit (loans) in the economy (and also monetary policy to
keep the economy growing at a steady rate with low inflation)
domestic - within the country ภายในประเทศ
consumption - goods and services that households
(families) buy การบริโภค (See Wikipedia)
Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) - a measure of economic activity in a
country, the value of the country's output of goods and services. GDP
is defined roughly as: GDP = Household Consumption + Business
Investment + Change in Inventories + (Government Spending -
Taxes) + (Exports - Imports) (See Economist
Glossary)
The Indonesian economy
is expected to face inflation in the second half of the
year and its central bank will likely respond by increasing interest rates, but the country should
nevertheless enjoy healthy growth in a range of 5.5% to 6.0% this year as
the world economy recovers, says K-Research.
The value of bilateral trade between Thailand and
Indonesia is also expected to recover into positive territory from the 26% contraction seen last year, said the
centre.
expected
- believe will happen คาดว่า (จะเกิดขึ้น)
inflation - the level of prices rising in the
economy as a whole ภาวะเงินเฟ้อ, อัตราเงินเฟ้อ (See
Economist Glossary)
respond - to say or do something as a reaction to
something that has been said or done ตอบสนอง, ตอบรับ
interest - payments made for the use of another's
money for a period of time
range - several numbers betwee two numbers ระหว่าง,
ช่วง
bilateral - involving two groups or countries
เกี่ยวกับกลุ่มทางการเมืองสองกลุ่ม, สองข้าง
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
recover - when the situation improves and gets
better, to become healthy and fit again after an illness or injury
การฟื้นไข้
positive - good ที่ดี, hopeful and confident, or
giving cause for hope and confidence ซึ่งมองในแง่ดี
territory - an area, original meaning: land which is
considered as belonging to or connected with a particular country or
person ดินแดน
contraction - decreasing in size, shrinking, growing
smaller
The elimination of tariffs on 8,625 categories of goods
under Afta will be a key factor.
Thai
intermediate and finished products exported to Indonesia will
gain tariff advantages when competing against goods from Japan, South
Korea, China, the US, Taiwan, Hong Kong, India, Saudi Arabia and other
non-Asean countries.
However, Thai raw materials, including chemical products
and plastics, will face intense competition from regional Asean rivals who all enjoy the same tariff
benefits, while the quality of
materials from these countries is largely the same.
tariffs
- taxes on imports (to make foreign goods less competitive in a
country) พิกัดอัตราภาษีศุลกากร
key - important คนสำคัญ
factor - a fact or situation which influences the
result of something ปัจจัย
intermediate products -
products that are used as parts or components in other products
finished products - the
final product sold to consumers in stores
raw
materials - materials in their natural state before being
processed or used in manufacturing
intense - done with a lot of effort, energy,
attention, etc. lots of activity เข้มข้น
competition -
situation in which two or more people are trying to get something that
not everyone can have
rivals - people you are competing with to achieve
something that not everyone can have (like getting elected),
opponents คู่แข่ง, คู่อริ
benefits - goods things that can happen from anm
activity ผลประโยชน์
Overall, growth is
expected for various Thai products, ranging from key export items such
as automobiles and sugar, to less prominent products such as food and beverages.
The automobile sector in
particular
will benefit from the Indonesia's growing demand for Thai exports as the tariff
elimination
will cut production costs and allow Chinese and Japanese investors to expand auto production
bases in
Indonesia.
prominent
- important and well known สำคัญ, มีชื่อเสียง, เด่น
beverages - drinks (milk, fruit juice, beer)
เครื่องดื่ม
X in particular - X
is one example of what I am talking about
demand - people or consumers needing or wanting to
buy goods and services ความต้องการ
elimination - ending,
stopping, getting rid of
tariff
elimination - ending tariffs
expand - to become larger ขายตัวออกไป
production bases -
the places or factories where a company produces its product
Another group of Thai
products expected to enjoy good export growth from zero tariffs is
electrical appliances, including both household and industrial products.
They include
air-conditioners, water heaters, washing machines, food
blenders, juice squeezers, microwave ovens, tape recorders, television sets and radios, lightbulbs, factory
machinery, fire
extinguishers, escalators, printers, electrical motors
and power
generators.
household
- a group of people, often a family, who live together ครัวเรือน
fire - ไล่ออก(จากงาน) terminate or end employment
food blenders -
machines that are used to mix different things together when cooking
(See Wikipedia)
juice squeezers, juicer -
a tool for extracting juice from fruits, vegetables (See Wikipedia)
fire extinguishers - a
device that sprays chemicals on a fire to put it out (See Wikipedia)
escalators - an
electrical moving staircase for moving people between the floors of a
building (See
Wikipedia)
power
- energy in the form of electricity produced in large quantities and
used to operate lights, machines, and heating
power generators - machines
that create power and electricity (used during blackouts when there is
no electricity)
According to
K-research, Thai food and agricultural goods are exported to Indonesia
in low volumes but they too may gain opportunities to grow under Afta. Rice and
sugar, however, are classified in the highly sensitive list (HSL) for Indonesia,
allowing it to keep tariffs at 30-40.
Indonesia will
continue to import rice and sugar from Thailand,
currently the top rice exporter to Indonesia, but both goods will face
competition from domestic producers as well as other Asean countries,
Vietnam for rice and Singapore and Malaysia for sugar.
Indonesia also maintain a general exclusion list (GE) of 96 products such as
alcoholic beverages, weapons, explosives and hazardous waste, but these will not
have much impact on Thailand because of very low trade volumes,
according to K-Research.
opportunities
- situations in which it is possible to do what you want or need to do,
benefits or profit that it is possible to get
classified - put
some item (here rice and sugar) into a class or category (kind, type,
sort)
sensitive - issue that needs to be dealt with very
carefully ที่ละเอียดอ่อน
import - to buy or bring in products from another
country นำเข้า
maintain a list - write things down on a list,
produce a list that the public can see
exclude X (verb)
- not include X
exclusion (noun) - the condition of not being include
explosives - substances or pieces of equipment that
can cause explosions สิ่งที่ระเบิดได้
hazardous - dangerous, especially to people's health
or safety
(Source: Economics, ASIA FOCUS, Bright
future for Thai exports to Indonesia seen under Afta, 8/03/2010, link)
Thailand must make big
choices to remain top rice exporter in world
By Jon Fernquest
 The
urgent
rice
policy decisions that Thailand must make if the country wishes to maintain
its position
as the top rice exporter in the world was the subject of this week's Asia Focus section in the Bangkok Post
on Monday.
Today's article is an extract from a larger article which
can be found here. It begins following the
vocabulary list below.
(Photo on right:
"Farmers pick rice saplings to transplant them to a field in the
northern Vietnamese province of Bac Ninh on Wednesday. Although Vietnam
is a leading rice exporter, farmers still use century-old traditional farming techniques. But that might not
be the case for long."
AFP)
urgent - must be
done quickly
maintain Y - make situation Y continue into the
future
maintain position
- continue in the same position into the future
extract - a
small part taken from a larger text
saplings - young trees ต้นอ่อน
transplant - move
something from one place to another (examples: transplant rice by
moving rice stalks from one field to another, a heart transplant
takes the heart from a person who has died recently and puts it in the
body of a living person who needs a new heart)
century - a period of one hundred years ศตวรรษ
traditional - things (clothes, music, customs, etc.)
that have been part of a country or society for a long time
techniques - methods of doing a task or activity
เทคนิค
be the case -
be the situation,
be true
might not be the case for
long - the situation may not continue for a long period of
time
Economics
ASIA FOCUS
Filling the rice bowl
8/03/2010
Walailak
Keeratipipatpong
Concern about a food crisis has put Thailand at a
crossroads,
where it must choose whether to be the top global exporter by volume or the market
leader in
premium grain.
The 2008 food crisis
has led to significant developments and expansion in Asia's rice industry but
Thailand, as the leading exporter, has stressed its determination to maintain its leadership position by implementing various measures.
crisis
- an urgent, difficult or dangerous situation วิกฤต
crossroads - where
two roads meet (must choose one to follow)
at a crossroads - when
a person is in a situation where they must make an important decision
in their life or business
global - throughout the world ทั่วโลก
volume - the quantity or amount of something ปริมาณ
leader - being
the first in a group that guides and shows the way for others ผู้นำ
leadership - being
in control of and guiding a group of people, making the important
decisions that affect their life ความเป็นผู้นำ
market leader - being
the first company in a
market that guides and shows the way for others ผู้นำตลาด
premium
- special features or service that you pay extra for
grain - the seed from cereal crops such as rice,
wheat, or corn เมล็ดพืช
significant - important สำคัญ
expansion - when something increases in size, number
or importance การขยายออก
stressed Y - stated that Y is important
determination - when
a person has decided to do something and won't let anything stop them
maintain Y - make situation Y continue into the
future
implementing - turning a plan into a functioning
system นำมาใช้จริง
measures - actions that are intended to achieve or
deal with something มาตราการ
One such measure that Thailand implemented last year was to guarantee farmers' incomes, and the
government remains optimistic about maintaining its export
leadership position with expected exports of about 10 million
tonnes this year.
The food
crisis of 2008
has inspired various countries in Asia to vie for status as the world's "rice bowl"
and many hope to be able to dethrone Thailand.
implemented
- when a plan is put into action, actually doing the things in a plan
guarantee - a promise that something will be done or
will happen คำรับรอง, การประกัน (See glossary)
optimistic - hopeful about the future and expecting
that
good things will happen (opposite of pessimistic)
ซึ่งมองในแง่ดี,ซึ่งมองโลกในแง่ดี
expected - believe will happen คาดว่า (จะเกิดขึ้น)
food crisis of 2008 - "The
years 2007–2008 saw dramatic increases in world food prices, creating a
global crisis and causing political and economical instability and
social unrest in both poor and developed nations." (See Wikipedia)
status - the state of affairs at a particular time
สถานะ
dethrone - replace
another as the leader or the first in some activity (example: dethrone
Thailand as the top rice exporter in the world)
Among the key members in the region,
Thailand, Vietnam, India, Pakistan, Burma, and Cambodia continue to dominate the rice trade, with 21.32 million tonnes of
the total global trade of 29.3 million in 2009. Their share is expected to rise to 23.4
million tonnes of the total of 30.84 million this year
Local investment in the rice industry - from
grading to advanced silos and storage units - boomed in 2008 and
2009, when the oil crisis drove up the prices of many grains including
rice, which sold at a record high of $1,222 per tonne for
the Hom Mali variety.
key
- important คนสำคัญ
dominate - to be the most powerful or most important
thing in an area or situation มีอิทธิพลเหนือ, มีอำนาจเหนือ
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
share - part (part of something larger that many
people share)
investment - taking your money and putting it into
projects to make a profit or earn interest (buying stock shares, bonds,
real estate)
silos - tall structures for storing large amounts of
agricultural products (rice, grain) (See Wikipedia)
storage - the putting and keeping of things in a
special place for use in the future การเก็บ
record - the best or most ever achieved สถิติ
variety - many different types of things or
people ความหลากหลาย
On the other hand
Vietnam, the world's second largest rice exporter, has set aside a fund of US$6 million (195.8
million baht) to improve rice quality. Farm co-operatives are also able to obtain soft loans to build facilities such as milling plants, processing
units,
and warehouses.
Cambodia-Vietnam Foods
Company has also been formed by the Vietnamese state enterprise Vinafood, Investment and
Development Joint Stock Co (IDCC) and Green Trade Co of Cambodia to
strengthen co-operation between the two countries in
raising their production and export profiles.
fund
- to provide money for something เงินทุน กองทุน
improve - to make better ทำให้ดีขึ้น
co-operative -
a business owned and operated by a group of individuals (not
stockholders) for their mutual benefit, for example: farmers running an
agricultural cooperative (See Wikipedia)
soft loans - loans with
easier terms (interest rates, payback period) than normally given
facilities - the buildings, equipment and services
provided for a particular purpose สิ่งอำนวยความสะดวก
plants, processing
units - factories
state - government รัฐ
enterprise - an organization, especially a business
กิจการ, บริษัท,อุตสาหกิจ,วิสาหกิจ
co-operation - working
together to achieve shared goals
profile of Y - how well-known Y is by other people
raise profiles - make
more well-known by others
Burma has placed more
importance on its rice industry in the past decade by allowing freer trade with
the aim of promoting the grain as the
major export item.
Official statistics show that Burma's rice
exports in the first nine months of the 2009-10 fiscal year (April to December) have
already exceeded 1.2 million tonnes against a target of 1.5 million. The figures are a huge improvement over the totals of recent
years, when the country's rice exports had dwindled below 100,000 tonnes.
It also
plans to expand
markets to more countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Australia, and North
Korea, as well as increase exports of high-grade rice to countries in
the Middle East and Europe
decade
- a period of ten years ทศวรรษ, ระยะเวลา 10 ปี
aim - purpose; goal เป้าหมาย จุดมุ่งหมาย
fiscal - connected with the government budget, i.e.,
public money เกี่ยวกับงบประมาณ
fiscal year - the
period of time during which money is budgeted and spent in the
government (not always same as calendar year)
target - goal, the amount you are planning to
achieve เป้าหมาย
figures - statistics, numbers
improvement - when something gets better or when you
make it better การปรับปรุง, การทำให้ดีขึ้น
dwindled -
decreased
expand - to become larger ขายตัวออกไป
(Source: Economics, ASIA FOCUS,
Filling the rice bowl, 8/03/2010, Walailak Keeratipipatpong, link)
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