Business Round-Up
Problems mount at troubled THAI
March 1st 2014
At press time, Thai Airways International (THAI) announced its board chairman, Ampon Kittiampon, who is also the cabinet secretary general in the current Thai government, will step down as chairman on March 10, but will remain a THAI board member. Read More » His successor is the vice chairman of the board, air force commander, Prachin Chantong. The chairman’s resignation, which he insisted was not forced, followed the departure last December of the airline’s president, Sorajak Kasemsuvan, after little more than a year in the job. THAI has yet to name a successor.
The change in chairmanship was announced soon after THAI reported a fiscal year loss of 12 billion baht (US$15.483 million) in 2013, compared with a 6.2 billion baht profit a year earlier. Although the red ink was expected, the large loss underpins THAI’s fragile position as political unrest escalates in the Thai capital, Bangkok, with more deaths reported as clashes between government and anti-government forces continue. While THAI searches for a new president, the airline must deal with political instability, fierce competition from a wave of regional short and long haul start-ups, consistently high fuel prices, a declining baht and a less than nimble management. Combined, the fearsome set of factors will significantly erode the carrier’s market share, both domestically and regionally, in 2014.
