Thailand's new PM meets Tesla chief Musk in New York
In this March 14, 2019 file photo, Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks before unveiling the Model Y at the company's design studio in Hawthorne, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
BANGKOK -
Thailand's new Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said on Thursday he met with Tesla chief Elon Musk in New York, where they discussed the electric vehicle industry.
Thailand, Asia's fourth-largest automobile assembly hub, has been offering incentives to EV and battery makers, and tax cuts to local EV buyers, to remain a regional auto center.
Srettha, who is in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly, said he spoke with Musk about EV manufacturer Tesla and his rocket and satellite company SpaceX, including its internet venture Starlink.
"We look forward to further discussions," Srettha posted on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Automakers with plants in Thailand include Toyota and Honda. The country produces about 1.5 million to 2 million vehicles annually, of which about half are exported.
EVs have been steadily gaining traction in Southeast Asia, a market dominated by Japanese carmakers.
EVs accounted for 6.4% of all passenger car sales in the region in the second quarter, up from 3.8% in the first quarter, Counterpoint Research data show.
Around half of all regional EV sales are from Thailand, followed by Vietnam and Indonesia, with Chinese carmakers like BYD leading by a wide margin. Tesla, also popular in Thailand, launched models in the growing market last year.
Southeast Asia accounted for less than 1% of Tesla's global sales, according to Counterpoint.
(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng and Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Jane Merriman and Richard Chang)
Shopping Trends
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
YOUR FINANCES
A holiday meal in Canada will be an 'expensive proposition': food lab
Celebrating with your family this December could come with increased expenses as data shows many traditional holiday foods are going up in price.
Canadians increasingly turning to charities to meet essential needs, but cost of living also hitting donations
Every Giving Tuesday, many Canadians generously dig into their wallets to donate to charities, but as the cost of living climbs, research suggests many Canadians are also in need of help.
What is the grocery code of conduct, and will it help to lower the cost of food?
Canada's grocery code of conduct is in the final stages with advocates saying it would help lower food prices while big grocers say it won't.
Poor Inuit housing 'direct result of colonialism': federal housing advocate
A federal housing advocate is accusing every level of government in Canada of failing to uphold the Inuit's right to housing -- and therefore denying their human rights.
Having financial problems? Don't get caught in debt relief scams
With inflation, rising interest rates, and higher costs for gas, groceries and housing, many Canadians are feeling the financial pinch and now personal bankruptcies are on the rise.
Do you tip at a restaurant like Chipotle? Here’s what a survey found
But the majority of Americans say they tip 15 per cent or less for a typical meal at a sit-down restaurant, according to a wide-ranging new poll on tipping attitudes from Pew Research Center. The poll surveyed nearly 12,000 people.
Loblaw raises the affordability alarm as grocery code of conduct nears completion
As the grocery code of conduct nears completion, the Canadian industry's biggest player is raising concerns the guidelines could add fuel to the food inflation fire.
Here's how much it costs to raise children in Canada, according to new statistics
A new report from Statistics Canada estimates how much parents will spend on children over the course of their lifetime.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING
BREAKING Claims of toxic workplace at CSIS absolutely 'devastating': PM says
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says allegations of a toxic workplace culture, involving harassment and sexual assault at Canada's spy agency are 'devastating' and 'absolutely unacceptable.'
Alberta set for $5.5B budget surplus, despite big bucks for fires, floods and drought
Alberta’s budget surplus is growing but will be offset by more than $1 billion this year to pay for floods, forest fires and drought.
Here's when Canada Post says you should send out your holiday packages
Canada Post had released a holiday guide on when Canadians should mail out their packages.
TREND LINE
TREND LINE Liberals and NDP tied in ballot support, Conservatives 19 points ahead: Nanos
The governing minority Liberals' decline in the polls has now placed them in a tie for support with their confidence-and-supply partners the NDP, while the Conservatives are now 19 points ahead, according Nanos' latest ballot tracking.
2023 Atlantic hurricane season ends; finishes 4th for most-named storms
The 2023 Atlantic hurricane season comes to an end on Thursday as the fourth
More Israeli hostages freed by Hamas as truce in Gaza lasts another day
Hamas began freeing Israeli hostages Thursday in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners to be released as part of a last-minute deal to extend their ceasefire in Gaza by another day. But any further renewal of the truce, now in its seventh day, could prove more daunting since Hamas is expected to set a higher price for many of the remaining hostages.
What to know about the Sikh independence movement following U.S. accusation that activist was targeted
The U.S. has charged an Indian national in what prosecutors allege was a failed plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist at the behest of an unnamed Indian government official.
Alternative healer faces manslaughter charge over woman's death at a U.K. slapping therapy workshop
An alternative healer who advocates a technique known as 'slapping therapy' was charged Thursday over the death of a woman at one of his workshops in England seven years ago.
Chinstrap penguins nod off more than 10,000 times per day in seconds-long 'microsleeps,' study finds
A new study has documented the peculiar sleeping habits of this species of penguin. Instead of taking one long continuous period of sleep, chinstrap penguins prefer to sleep in seconds-long intervals, more than 10,000 times a day.
Canada
-
Alberta set for $5.5B budget surplus, despite big bucks for fires, floods and drought
Alberta’s budget surplus is growing but will be offset by more than $1 billion this year to pay for floods, forest fires and drought.
-
Sask. premier says province will stop collecting carbon levy on electric heat
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says the province intends to stop collecting the carbon levy on electric heat.
-
Canadian economy shrank in Q3 but manages to 'keep its head above recession waters'
The Canadian economy shrank in the third quarter as higher rates weighed on consumer and business spending, but has so far managed to skirt a recession after a significant upward revision to second quarter GDP figures.
-
2023 Atlantic hurricane season ends; finishes 4th for most-named storms
The 2023 Atlantic hurricane season comes to an end on Thursday as the fourth
-
A holiday meal in Canada will be an 'expensive proposition': food lab
Celebrating with your family this December could come with increased expenses as data shows many traditional holiday foods are going up in price.
-
Here's when Canada Post says you should send out your holiday packages
Canada Post had released a holiday guide on when Canadians should mail out their packages.
World
-
Allegations against India official linked to plot to kill Sikh separatist on U.S. soil are serious: White House
The U.S. takes very seriously the allegations against an Indian government official who is accused of directing an unsuccessful plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist on U.S. soil, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday.
-
What to know about the Sikh independence movement following U.S. accusation that activist was targeted
The U.S. has charged an Indian national in what prosecutors allege was a failed plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist at the behest of an unnamed Indian government official.
-
New York punished 2,000 prisoners over false positive drug tests, report finds
New York's prison system unfairly punished more than 2,000 prisoners after tests of suspected contraband substances falsely tested positive for drugs, according to a report released Thursday. In hundreds of cases, the prisoners had committed no offense, but the flawed results were used to put them in solitary confinement, halt family visits, or cancel parole hearings.
-
An appeals court reinstates gag order that barred Trump from maligning court staff in N.Y. fraud trial
A New York appeals court Thursday reinstated a gag order that barred Donald Trump from commenting about court personnel after the former president repeatedly disparaged a law clerk in his New York civil fraud trial.
-
South Koreans want their own nukes. That could roil one of the world's most dangerous regions
With dozens of nukes in North Korea's burgeoning arsenal, repeated threats to launch them at its enemies, and a stream of tests of powerful missiles designed to pinpoint target a U.S. city with a nuclear strike, a growing number of South Koreans are losing faith in America's vow to back its longtime ally.
-
Russian missile strikes in eastern Ukraine rip through buildings, kill 2 and bury families in rubble
Russian missiles tore through apartment buildings in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region, local officials said Thursday, killing at least two people and burying families under rubble as the Kremlin's forces continued to pound the fiercely contested area with long-range weapons.
Politics
-
Canadian government to buy Boeing P-8A surveillance planes to replace aging Auroras
The federal government is buying at least 14 Boeing surveillance planes from the United States to replace the aging CP-140 Aurora fleet, cabinet ministers announced Thursday. The deal costs more than $10 billion in total, including US$5.9 billion for the jets themselves, and the planes are expected to be delivered in 2026 and 2027.
-
BREAKING
BREAKING Claims of toxic workplace at CSIS absolutely 'devastating': PM says
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says allegations of a toxic workplace culture, involving harassment and sexual assault at Canada's spy agency are 'devastating' and 'absolutely unacceptable.'
-
TREND LINE
TREND LINE Liberals and NDP tied in ballot support, Conservatives 19 points ahead: Nanos
The governing minority Liberals' decline in the polls has now placed them in a tie for support with their confidence-and-supply partners the NDP, while the Conservatives are now 19 points ahead, according Nanos' latest ballot tracking.
Health
-
Years in the works, Canada's new 988 suicide crisis line is now available
In a massive step towards prioritizing the mental health and well-being of Canadians, the government has officially launched a nationwide, three-digit suicide crisis helpline.
-
Create national breast-implant registry to help prevent complications: committee
The House of Commons health committee is echoing long-standing calls from plastic surgeons and patient advocates for a national breast-implant registry to prevent illness and problems linked to the medical devices.
-
Alternative healer faces manslaughter charge over woman's death at a U.K. slapping therapy workshop
An alternative healer who advocates a technique known as 'slapping therapy' was charged Thursday over the death of a woman at one of his workshops in England seven years ago.
Sci-Tech
-
Chinstrap penguins nod off more than 10,000 times per day in seconds-long 'microsleeps,' study finds
A new study has documented the peculiar sleeping habits of this species of penguin. Instead of taking one long continuous period of sleep, chinstrap penguins prefer to sleep in seconds-long intervals, more than 10,000 times a day.
-
Brazilian city enacts an ordinance secretly written by a surprising new staffer: ChatGPT
City lawmakers in Brazil have enacted what appears to be the nation's first legislation written entirely by artificial intelligence -- even if they didn't know it at the time.
-
Make a mess of the streets of Toronto as a raccoon in new video game 'Trash Panda'
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to experience the city as a raccoon, wreaking havoc and being enamored with garbage? Well, a new video game created by a Toronto-based filmmaker lets you do just that. The game, ‘Trash Panda,’ was officially released on Nov. 15 and is now available for sale.
Entertainment
-
Shane MacGowan, lead singer of The Pogues and a laureate of booze and beauty, dies at age 65
Shane MacGowan, the singer-songwriter and frontman of 'Celtic Punk' band The Pogues, best known for the Christmas ballad 'Fairytale of New York,' died Thursday, his family said. He was 65.
-
After hearing, judge mulls extending pause on John Oates' sale of stake in business with Daryl Hall
A lawsuit by Daryl Hall over John Oates' plan to sell his share of the Hall & Oates duo's joint venture without the other's permission headed Thursday to court, where a judge will decide whether to keep pausing the deal.
-
Will an earlier Oscars broadcast attract more viewers? ABC plans to try the 7 p.m. slot in 2024
Academy Awards enthusiasts won't have to stay up quite as late to hear the best picture winner in March. The 96th Oscars will begin one hour early, with the official show starting at 7 p.m. Eastern for the first time, ABC said Thursday.
