Bangkok August 2020

BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT
THAILAND BUSINESS NEWS
SALES OF MERCEDES-BENZ G
CLASS MODELS SURGE
IN THAILAND
Despite the coronavirus, Mercedes Benz
(Thailand) reported that sales of its G class
off-road vehicles jumped by more than 225%
for the first 6 months of 2020, based on a year
on year comparison.
Sales of the AMG sports car also rose, but
by a more modest 1.6 per cent. These rises
came at a time when the car industry as a
whole was bracing for a downturn.
Roland Folger, president and chief executive
of Mercedes-Benz (Thailand), was quoted
as saying that G Class sales in June, ”have
surprisingly risen more than what we expected”,
adding, “These results showed a positive
trend for the Thai car market in the third quarter.”
The success
was due to carefully
engineered
online marketing
that enabled
users to become familiar with the features
of the models without leaving their home.
Mr. Folger was also quoted as saying, “As
consumers continued to be able to access and
get close to the Mercedes-Benz brand over the
past months when we were facing the Covid-19
crisis, it was reflected in positive sales results
during the first half of 2020.”
THAILAND’S PTT BEHIND ASIA’S
LONGEST DATED BOND ISSUE
Energy Company, PTT, has raised US$700
million by way of a 50-year bonds issuance.
These are the longest dated bonds ever issued
in Asia. The yield offered was 3.7 per
cent.
Just how investors can tell the future direction
of interest rates over the next 10 or 20
years is hard to imagine, but a whopping 50
years would require some certain conviction
from investors. Yet interestingly, demand for
longer dated bonds is increasing due to requirements
for pension funds to plan for the
future.
A debt capital markets banker who worked
on the PTT deal was quoted as saying, "For
high quality names moving towards longer
date deals is not that difficult, we have seen
some 40-year transactions already," adding,
"We are not jumping from 10-year deals to
50-year deals, we are moving there gradually
and investors are becoming more receptive to
longer dated issuances.”
THAI VIETJET SEES PROMISE IN
THE DOMESTIC TRAVEL MARKET
Thai Vietjet, an airline in the Kingdom operating
a number of domestic routes, has seen
an increase in bookings of around 10% in July
versus the month before.
The company hopes to boost domestic
travel demand by increasing the number of domestic
routes it flies. Five new routes are to be
added to its network.
These will be Bangkok to Khon Kaen,
Bangkok to Nakhon Si Thammarat, Bangkok to
Surat Thani, Bangkok to Hat Yai, and Bangkok
to Ubon Ratchathani.
Currently the airline is only flying 7 out of its
11 strong fleet of Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft
and so has the capacity to grow its route-map.
Thai Vietjet’s chairwoman, Nguyen Thi
Thuy Binh, was quoted as saying, “A growth
trend is possible in July, thanks to government
support to stimulate domestic tourism.”
www.thailand-business-supplement.com
HONDA UNVEILS THE NEW HONDA CR-V
Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co.,
Ltd. today unveiled the new Honda
CR-V, Honda’s iconic premium SUV, in
Thailand, making its debut in Asia and
Oceania. The new Honda CR-V comes
with a new exterior design that emphasizes
its sporty, luxurious, and robust
look in every dimension, making it more
premium with a panoramic sunroof and
LED sequential turn signals. It also features
intelligent safety technology to ensure
confidence in every journey: Honda
SENSING and smart technology; Honda
CONNECT that connects the driver
and car; and many premium features
for comfort in the spacious cabin ready
to answer every lifestyle need in both a
7-seater and 5-seater variant. The new
Honda CR-V is equipped with a 1.6L
i-DTEC DIESEL TURBO engine or a
2.4L DOHC i-VTEC petrol engine with a
CVT transmission. Offered in a new color,
Cosmic Blue Metallic, it is available at
prices from 1,369,000 to 1,759,000 baht,
along with a 1.99% special interest rate
offer, or, alternatively, the Double Smile
campaign with installments starting from
only 18,000 baht per month plus free insurance
for one year.
Exterior: A luxurious and robust look
in every dimension
More premium with a One-Touch
Panoramic Sunroof .Enhanced sporty
spirit with a Gloss Black front grille and
newly-designed front and back bumpers.
Tailgate in a black chrome wrap and taillight
in a black wrap. Full LED headlights,
with LED Daytime Running Lights (DRL)
and LED sequential turn signals, and full
LED taillights. Accentuated body line and
sporty new 18-inch alloy wheels.
The new Honda CR-V enhances
customers’ confidence with Honda’s
intelligent safety technology, Honda
SENSING, which includes
Collision Mitigation Braking System
(CMBS), Adaptive Cruise Control with
Low-Speed Follow (ACC with LSF), Lane
Keeping Assist System (LKAS), Road
Departure Mitigation System with Lane
Departure Warning (RDM with LDW) and
Auto High-Beam (AHB).
Other advanced safety features include
Honda Lane Watch, Driver Attention
Monitor (all variants) which detects
the driver’s tiredness on the steering
controls and alerts the driver with notification
via TFT display and steering vibration,
Agile Handling Assist (AHA), and
Honda CONNECT, a smart technology
that connects the driver and car.
Interior: Spacious cabin reflects a
luxury lifestyle fully equipped with premium
comfort features
The new Honda CR-V’s interior
comes with an attractive large console
in woodgrain and piano black, and is
available with 3-row seating (7 seats)
and 2-row seating (5 seats). Features
to provide premium comfort for every
trip include a Wireless Charger, Auto
Foldable Side Door Mirror (controlled
by remote control), Driver Memory Seat,
8-way power driver seat with 4-way lumbar
support, Auto Dimming Rear View
Mirror (all variants), and an Air-conditioning
system for both the 2nd and 3rd
row of seating (7-seats). It also features
modern connected technologies such
as a 7-inch Advanced Touch with Apple
CarPlay Display Audio and Siri voice
control, a navigation system (only 4WD
variants), TFT Multi-Information Display
that allows various features and content
to be displayed, and easy controls with
a multifunction steering wheel providing
buttons to control the audio system and
your phone.
The new Honda CR-V is ready to
respond to any lifestyle and functional
need. Enjoy the premium lifestyle with a
Hands-free Power Tailgate (all variants)
that can control opening and closing and
an adjustable height setting by remote
control, and design your own functional
areas with foldable seats to serve various
purposes, plus a flexible center console
that can adjust the storage compartment
three ways for usage.
Two engine options for powerful performance
The 1.6L i-DTEC 4-cylinder DIESEL
TURBO engine has maximum power
of 160 Ps at 4,000 rpm and maximum
torque of 350 newton-meters at 2,000
rpm, equivalent to a large-size diesel
engine. It works together with a shift-bywire
nine-speed automatic transmission
designed to offer good acceleration and
exceptionally high fuel efficiency of 17.9
km/l, together with a 4WD system. The
2.4L DOHC i-VTEC 4-cylinder engine
provides 173 Ps at 6,200 rpm and
224 newton-meters of torque
at 4,000 rpm. It is integrated
with a CVT
automatic transmission
that
offers timely
response,
and is compatible
with
E85 and E20
alternative
fuels. This
engine is
available with
either a 2WD
or 4WD system.
The new Honda CR-V comes in five
variants
Diesel engine DT-EL 4WD 7
seats for 1,759,000 baht; Petrol engine
2.4 EL 4WD 7 seats for 1,579,000
baht; Petrol engine 2.4 E
7 seats for 1,419,000 baht; Petrol
engine 2.4 ES 4WD 5 seats for
1,529,000 baht; Petrol engine 2.4 S 5
seats for 1,369,000 baht
The new Honda CR-V is available
in five stylish colors: A new color -
Cosmic Blue (Metallic), Crystal Black
(Pearl), Modern Steel (Metallic), Platinum
White (Pearl), and Lunar Silver
(Metallic).
Enjoy the new Honda CR-V special
offer of either a special interest rate of
1.99% or the “Double Smile” campaign
with installments starting from only
18,000 baht per month plus free insurance
for one year.
For more information about the new Honda
CR-V, please visit: www.honda.co.th/crv
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