Kasikornbank Research Center has raised its full-year 2025 economic forecast for Thailand to 2.0% from 1.2%, following stronger-than-expected first quarter performance and support from the 400-billion-baht emergency loan decree.

Thailand's economy in Q1 2025 expanded faster than anticipated at 2.8% year-on-year and 0.7% quarter-on-quarter, driven by both private and public investment as well as private and public consumption. These two factors contributed to Q1 GDP growth of 4.3%. Meanwhile, higher-than-expected exports and private investment were offset by robust imports, which surged 25.4% year-on-year.

The Thai economy also benefited from higher inventory levels compared to the same period last year, consistent with industrial production returning to positive growth in the first quarter and agricultural output increasing from the previous year due to favorable weather conditions.

Amid the impact of Middle East tensions, Kasikornbank Research Center had previously estimated Thailand's 2025 economy would expand within the range of 0.8–1.2% (forecast issued in April 2025) due to rising energy prices and a slowdown in tourism.

However, Q1 2025 GDP came in better than expected, combined with stronger-than-anticipated momentum in private investment and additional support from the 400-billion-baht emergency loan decree, prompting the research center to revise its 2025 GDP forecast upward to 2.0% from 1.2%.

Thailand's 2025 trade surplus is expected to decline from previous estimates and fall significantly compared to the previous year. Exports are projected to grow 8.2%, up from the previous forecast, supported primarily by electronics exports. However, this forecast accounts for risks from U.S. trade measures that may impose tariffs on Thai goods under Section 301 in the second half of 2025 onward.

Meanwhile, 2025 imports are expected to expand sharply to 13.9%, consistent with export growth and private investment expansion. Foreign tourist arrivals in 2025 are forecasted to fall to approximately 30 million from the previous estimate of 31.5 million, as elevated jet fuel prices continue to pressure global airlines' operating costs, leading to higher airfares and dampening tourist travel confidence, particularly among long-haul visitors.

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Wat Khao Sap Phong Phot in Non Somborn Subdistrict, Sai Thong District, Nakhon Ratchasima Province is constructing a nine-story stupa and preparing Buddha images to be installed on the fourth level. Community members volunteer daily, and during the school break, local youth join their parents to help craft the images.

Grandmother Somjit Thongduang from Ban Suan Pang Mai shares that she comes to make Buddha images every day, living about 10 kilometers from the temple. During the school closure, she invited children to join in, giving them meaningful activities away from mobile phones while instilling religious values and teaching productive use of free time. The children have become so enthusiastic that initially parents had to encourage them, but now the children invite their parents to come.

There are two methods used at the temple: making clay-fired Buddha images and creating images from stone mixed with resin or epoxy. Children primarily work on the clay-fired images, kneading clay until it achieves the right consistency, then pressing it into Buddha-shaped molds. After drying, the molds are removed to reveal beautiful clay Buddha images.

Another activity the children particularly enjoy is hunting for beautiful stones in stone piles to be used by parents and adults to create resin or epoxy-mixed Buddha images. The colors and patterns vary depending on the creator's imagination and how different stones are arranged in the molds.

Temple Buddha-making activities start at 8 a.m. daily. Anyone interested can participate at Wat Khao Sap Phong Phot in Non Somborn Subdistrict, Sai Thong District, Nakhon Ratchasima Province. Those unable to attend can contribute clay or donate resin or epoxy for the project.

A freight train collided with an air-conditioned intercity bus line 206 in central Bangkok, causing a massive fire that killed and injured numerous people. This tragedy exposes critical failures in Thailand's transportation infrastructure—from outdated systems and insufficient safety investments to poor equipment maintenance and coordination gaps between agencies. The discovery that the train operator tested positive for drugs raises additional concerns about the screening and supervision standards for public transport personnel who hold people's lives in their hands. While human negligence and disregard for safety warnings by road users also play a role, the state cannot shift all responsibility onto the public. The government must design systems that prevent human errors from becoming major catastrophes through comprehensive automated barriers, stuck-vehicle detection systems, multi-level warning signals, real-time monitoring cameras, and grade separations in urban areas. Beyond legal accountability, survivors deserve more than apologies and token compensation—the state must conduct thorough investigations and hold all responsible parties accountable while urgently implementing comprehensive safety reforms for both roads and railways. This expensive lesson must be genuinely learned by all stakeholders and society as a whole, not forgotten as just another headline before the next preventable tragedy occurs.

Op-Ed by Her Excellency Mrs. Luisa Ragher, Ambassador of the European Union to the Kingdom of Thailand, Her Excellency Ms. Ping Kitnikone, Ambassador of Canada to the Kingdom of Thailand, and Mr. Viktor Semenov, Chargé d'Affaires a.i. of Ukraine in the Kingdom of Thailand.

In times of conflict, and in times of peace, the rights of children must remain among any nation's foremost responsibilities. Regardless of nationality, politics, or geography, every child has the same fundamental rights: to safety, to family, to education, and to a future free from fear. When children become victims of war, protecting them is not only a national responsibility, but also a shared duty of the entire international community.

The unlawful deportation and forced transfer of Ukrainian children did not begin with Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. This practice began years earlier, following the illegal occupation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in 2014. By 2015, there was evidence of Ukrainian children being taken from non-government-controlled areas of Ukraine and deported across borders or transferred deeper into Russian-controlled areas.

This unlawful and inhumane practice has grown into a large-scale and systematic violation of the rights of Ukrainian children. Today, the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine has officially confirmed more than 20,000 cases of deportation and forced transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia or temporarily Russian-controlled territory. For these children, the disruption has meant not only displacement, but separation from family, loss of community, and an attack on their identity, language, and connection to home. Their situation reminds us that protecting children in conflict is not an abstract principle, it is a human responsibility that requires sustained international cooperation.

Ukrainian authorities and civil society organisations working on these cases face enormous challenges in tracing where children have been taken. Russia has not provided comprehensive information about the number of deported or transferred children or their locations, making identifying and ultimately returning those children extremely difficult. Even when children are located, bringing them home can be a long and complex process.

This is why international cooperation is essential. No country facing such a challenge could address it alone. And no child should have to wait for the world to act.

This is the purpose behind the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, launched by Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in 2023, and the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, launched by Ukraine and Canada in February 2024. Bring Kids Back UA provides the national framework for Ukraine's efforts to return children, support their recovery and reintegration, and pursue accountability. The International Coalition mobilizes international support for those objectives and helps translate political commitment into coordinated action.

BANGKOK — Chanokchon Limpinpetch, a member of Thailand's national ice hockey team, has died at the age of 27 after suffering a severe bloodstream infection, officials said.

According to reports, Chanokchon travelled from Chumphon province to Bangkok on 15 May and stayed at a residence in Bang Bua Thong district. Early on 16 May, he developed a high fever and took medication after his symptoms worsened.

Later that morning, he went out to buy supplies but continued feeling unwell and was admitted to Kasemrad Hospital.

His condition deteriorated on 17 May, with doctors attempting to resuscitate him for several hours after his heart stopped beating. He was pronounced dead at noon. Doctors concluded the cause of death was a bloodstream infection.

His body will be taken to Chumphon province for Christian funeral rites.

Chanokchon first joined Thailand's senior national team at age 20 during the 2019 SEA Games and remained a key player through the 2025 SEA Games hosted by Thailand. Wearing jersey number 42, he played as a forward and was considered one of the team's core second-line players.

His achievements included a gold medal at the 2019 SEA Games, a silver medal at the 2025 SEA Games, and a World Championship Division III Group A title. He also represented Thailand at the 2025 Asian Winter Games in Harbin, China.

ML. Kridsada Kasemsanta, president of the Ice Hockey Association of Thailand, expressed deep sorrow over the loss, describing Chanokchon as a disciplined athlete with great potential and an important member of the national team.