Thailand's newly-registered businesses make new high in January

BANGKOK, February 7 (TNA) - The number of newly-registered businesses in Thailand made a new historic high in January 2013, reflecting that the government's new minimum wage hike to 300 baht nationwide did not affect local businesses. When reporting the update, Deputy Commerce Minister Nattawut Saikuar acknowledged on Thursday that new business registrations were sought by 8,184 firms last month, exceeding 8,000 per month for the first time in the country so far and soared by 80 per cent from December 2012 and by 60 per cent year-on-year. Nattawut told journalists that the amount of registered capitals in Thailand also surged by 142 per cent last month and by 133 per cent year-on-year. According to the deputy commerce minister, the increased business registrations, covering those of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), showed that the Thai government's 300 baht-daily minimum wage nationwide did not affect local businesses. The deputy commerce minister said three kinds of businesses with the highest registrations last month included entertainment, broadcasting and construction firms, noting, however, that the number of businesses registered for their closure stood at 1,202 in January 2013. (TNA)