On August 17, 2025, at Bang Bua Thong Police Station in Nonthaburi Province, a 30-year-old noodle shop owner reported being defrauded by a foreign man claiming to be a respected Buddhist scholar and fortune teller. According to her account, on August 15 at around 11:20 am, a tall foreign man in his 50s wearing a headwrap approached her shop. He claimed he had seen spiritual entities attached to her and offered to help by performing a fortune reading. He made remarkably accurate predictions about her family, convincing her he possessed genuine spiritual powers. He charged 300 baht for the initial reading (200 baht for divination and 100 baht as an offering). During the reading, he had her place her palms together, and when he pressed his palms against hers, he claimed the numbers 531 appeared, indicating she needed to undergo a purification ritual to receive good fortune.

The man then persuaded her to pay 4,900 baht—later reduced to 2,900 baht—for a merit-making ceremony to remove malevolent spirits. The shop owner, feeling confused and disoriented, complied and made a bank transfer. After the man left, she came to her senses and realized she had been duped. When she called the number he provided to demand a refund, he threatened her, claiming she was disgracing his reputation, and told her to wait nine days for her life to improve. The victim noted that the predicted numbers 531 seemed designed to encourage her to buy a lottery ticket for the next draw, raising further suspicion of a scam. She filed a police report to prevent him from defrauding others.

Moshi Moshi Retail Corporation, Thailand's leading lifestyle retail chain, announced second-quarter 2025 results with operating revenue of 956.10 million baht, up 17.2 percent year-on-year, and net profit of 161.86 million baht, up 20.4 percent. The company's revenue breakdown comprised 86 percent from retail operations, 11 percent from wholesale, and 3 percent from other distribution channels.

The strong growth was driven by same-store sales growth of 4 percent, efficient cost management, and expansion of 11 new store locations across Thailand, including outlets in Mae Sot, Khon Kaen, Rayong, Maha Sarakham, Samut Songkhram, and Surin. For the first half of 2025, the company reported total revenue of 1.947 billion baht, up 17.1 percent year-on-year, with net profit of 352.83 million baht, up 21.5 percent. Net profit margin improved to 18.1 percent from 17.5 percent.

The company launched an extensive Back to School campaign featuring new seasonal products, licensed collections from Disney, Sanrio, Kakao Friends, and Powerpuff Girls, as well as in-house designed collections Snappy Dino and Moompa collaborations with Thai artists. Marketing efforts included appointing brand ambassadors and creating customer engagement through social media. The board approved an interim dividend of 0.64 baht per share with ex-dividend date on August 28 and payment date on September 11, 2025.

The Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation is elevating the cybersecurity curriculum at Panyapiwat Institute of Management to combat increasingly complex cyber threats. On August 17, Deputy Permanent Secretary Panthip Arunee presided over the first curriculum review for the Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity programme for the 2025 academic year. The review committee included faculty deans, curriculum heads, and representatives from the National Cybersecurity Committee, industry, and students.

Deputy Permanent Secretary Panthip emphasized that the ministry prioritizes developing cybersecurity personnel as essential to driving digital economy and society. He praised Panyapiwat's efforts to align the curriculum with national demands through Thailand's Higher Education Sandbox scheme, which enables flexible education models linked to industry and responsive to technological change. The approach includes integrating artificial intelligence with cybersecurity knowledge to counter emerging threats effectively.

"Cybersecurity curriculum development must be continuous to keep pace with rapidly evolving technology and threats," the deputy secretary stated. "The ministry closely monitors curriculum quality and learning outcomes while consulting relevant agencies, especially the National Cybersecurity Committee, which shapes national cybersecurity standards. We also engage businesses, employers, students, and stakeholders to gather real-world insights for curriculum improvement, ensuring graduates meet labour market and national needs at international standards."

The committee subsequently held discussions with National Cybersecurity Committee representatives, employers hosting student internships, and current students to gather feedback on learning delivery and identify essential knowledge, skills, and competencies for real-world cybersecurity work. Input from government, industry, and learners will inform recommendations to modernize the curriculum, align it with standards and national requirements, and strengthen cybersecurity workforce development.

A man in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, who regularly livestreams online but has seen his viewership and popularity decline, came up with an unusual idea to attract viewers: he stole a 75-kilogram decorative stone from a residential entrance to use as a prop in livestream content. On July 30, police received a report that the stone had gone missing from the village entrance. Officers reviewed security camera footage from the area and discovered that around 8 p.m. on July 29, a man wearing a black tank top arrived on an electric motorcycle and stopped at the village entrance. He looked both ways, and when he saw no traffic or people passing by, he lifted the 75-kilogram stone with his bare hands, placed it on the footrest of his motorcycle, and rode away.

Police identified the suspect through their investigation and tracked him to his residence, where he was taken into custody. During questioning, the man admitted that he had been livestreaming for a long time but recently experienced declining viewership and audience engagement. He wanted to attract more followers and increase donations and gifts during his livestreams. He conceived a content idea: "If any fan sends gifts and reaches the top donor rank, I will lift this stone to thank them." This was intended to create novelty and grab viewers' attention. Because he needed a heavy stone as a prop, he decided to steal it from the village entrance.

After receiving legal education, the man confessed and expressed remorse for his actions. Considering this was his first offense, the stone was returned in good condition, and the residents had forgiven him, police handled the case with a monetary fine of 800 yuan, approximately 3,700 baht.

The Thai Red Cross Eye Bank presented a plaque of gratitude to the CP-True group for supporting and promoting eye donation through the "Let Them See Love" programme, now in its 20th consecutive year.

On August 16, 2026, Tetch Bunnag, secretary-general of the Thai Red Cross Society, opened the 2026 Eye Bank Day event and presented the plaque to Charoen Pokphand Group and True Corporation for their role in supporting the eye donation campaign through the "Let Them See Love" initiative, now marking its 20th year. Rungfa Kiartiphon, special projects executive and senior assistant vice president of Charoen Pokphand Group, accepted the award at the Medical Development Building of Chulalongkorn Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society.

The support operates through the "Let Them See Love" programme, which CP and True have run continuously for 20 years to raise awareness about the importance of eye and organ donation and provide new life opportunities for patients awaiting transplants. The campaign operates under the concept of "Give Life... Continue Life" and invites customers and the public to contribute funds year-round to support the eye and organ donation process.

Members of the public can participate in "Give Life... Continue Life" through several channels: donating via the True Money Wallet application with as little as one baht; transferring funds directly to the Eye Bank's savings account ("Eye Bank Thai Red Cross Society", account number 045-231390-2 at Siam Commercial Bank, Thai Red Cross branch); transferring to the Organ Donation Centre's savings account ("Organ Donation Centre Thai Red Cross Society", account number 023-1-25888-7 at Krung Thai Bank, Surawong branch); or using the e-Donation system, which provides double tax deduction benefits by scanning a QR code through mobile banking applications.

TTB Analytics forecasts that Thailand's building material production costs will rise approximately 20% in 2025 compared to the previous year, driven by higher energy costs, transportation fees, and raw material prices amid ongoing uncertainty from the Middle East conflict. Plastic manufacturers are expected to face the most severe impact, while small and medium-sized producers—already vulnerable with low profit margins and limited cost-absorption capacity—face compounded pressure. The economic think tank recommends businesses accelerate cost management, strengthen supply chain flexibility, and adjust business models to maintain profitability amid volatility.

Thailand's construction materials industry has struggled for years due to sluggish private sector investment, particularly in residential real estate weakened by consumer purchasing power, high household debt, and strict credit policies. With limited ability to pass cost increases to customers compared to periods of strong demand, producers face mounting pressure from the sector.

In 2025, the US-Iran conflict escalating into a regional crisis, with threats to close the Strait of Hormuz—a critical global shipping route for crude oil and petroleum products—will disrupt not only global energy supply chains but also building material production that relies on petroleum-derived raw materials and upstream commodity supplies from the Middle East. The prolonged uncertainty in the Middle East makes it unlikely that global crude oil and petroleum supplies will normalize in the short term, creating unavoidable pressure on construction material production costs.

TTB Analytics estimates 2025 production cost increases of around 20% year-on-year, based on three main components: energy costs, transportation costs, and raw material prices, broken down by producer type.

Metal products manufacturers generate approximately 770 billion baht in revenue, or 56.7% of total construction materials industry revenue. Although they face no direct supply chain disruption from petroleum products, Thai producers import primary and intermediate steel from China as raw material, with prices rising an average of just 8% from March to June. However, transportation costs surged, reflected in the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index rising 39% over the same period. TTB Analytics forecasts metal products manufacturers will see average cost increases of 25% in 2025.

Concrete and concrete products manufacturers generate approximately 310 billion baht, or 23.2% of total construction materials industry revenue. Costs are expected to rise an average of 11% in 2025, primarily from domestic transportation costs, as the concrete industry relies heavily on local supply.