Article

The 5 Billion Baht fund for tourism operators is not enough for them to all survive the slump, said Tourism and Sports Minister Chumpol Silpa-archa. The financial support programme was officially launched yesterday and will run until April 30. The Federation of Thai Tourism Associations (FTTA) predicted that at least four hundred and fifty tour operators would seek financial help worth at least 1.8 billion Baht.

More than one thousand restaurant operators are expected to submit loan applications for five hundred million Baht, with small hotels likely to seek up to two Billion Baht.

Soft loans to help tourism-related operators will charge an interest rate at 2% in the first 2 years, followed by the minimum lending rate (MLR) -3%.

The 5 Billion Baht fund for tourism operators is not enough for them to all survive the slump, said Tourism and Sports Minister Chumpol Silpa-archa. The financial support programme was officially launched yesterday and will run until April 30. The Federation of Thai Tourism Associations (FTTA) predicted that at least four hundred and fifty tour operators would seek financial help worth at least 1.8 billion Baht.

More than one thousand restaurant operators are expected to submit loan applications for five hundred million Baht, with small hotels likely to seek up to two Billion Baht.

Soft loans to help tourism-related operators will charge an interest rate at 2% in the first 2 years, followed by the minimum lending rate (MLR) -3%.

The wife of an alleged Russian arms dealer dubbed the "Merchant of Death" told a Thai court on Tuesday that her husband was entirely innocent and merely ran a legitimate air cargo business. Viktor Bout, 41, is fighting moves to extradite him to the United States over charges that he channelled arms to some of the world's most violent conflicts and to Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda movement. He was arrested in a sting operation in Bangkok a year ago after allegedly agreeing to supply surface to air missiles to US anti-drug agents posing as guerrillas from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The wife of an alleged Russian arms dealer dubbed the "Merchant of Death" told a Thai court on Tuesday that her husband was entirely innocent and merely ran a legitimate air cargo business. Viktor Bout, 41, is fighting moves to extradite him to the United States over charges that he channelled arms to some of the world's most violent conflicts and to Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda movement. He was arrested in a sting operation in Bangkok a year ago after allegedly agreeing to supply surface to air missiles to US anti-drug agents posing as guerrillas from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The wife of an alleged Russian arms dealer dubbed the "Merchant of Death" told a Thai court on Tuesday that her husband was entirely innocent and merely ran a legitimate air cargo business. Viktor Bout, 41, is fighting moves to extradite him to the United States over charges that he channelled arms to some of the world's most violent conflicts and to Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda movement. He was arrested in a sting operation in Bangkok a year ago after allegedly agreeing to supply surface to air missiles to US anti-drug agents posing as guerrillas from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).