The ceremony was presided over by Teerapol Chotichanapibal, vice president for sales and distribution at THAI; Edwin Yeow, managing director for marketing at Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts; and Christopher Paul, vice president for establishment services international and consumer cards at American Express.

Teerapol said THAI's Royal Orchard Holidays package offered the most convenient and enjoyable travel, including air tickets and accommodation in leading hotels, with special prices to customers travelling to THAI's destinations.

The latest package includes three days/two nights at the Lijiang Banyan Tree Package (Bt36,520) and five days/four nights at the Lijiang and Ringha Banyan Tree. (Bt61,965).

Japan :Toyota restructures Asia R&D base

Toyota Motor said in a statement the company had integrated its Asian research and development base the Toyota Technical Centre Asia Pacific (Thailand) with production-support company Toyota Motor Asia Pacific, in order to establish Toyota Motor Asia Pacific Engineering and Manufacturing (TMAP-EM).

The statement said TMAP-EM planned to strengthen the operations of Toyota's Asian production affiliates and promote further localisation by unifying development and evaluation of locally produced vehicles with local procurement and production operations.

TMAP-EM will also work closely with Singaporean sales-support company Toyota Motor Asia Pacific (TMAP-MS) to build an integrated structure for engineering, manufacturing and marketing, allowing more flexibility in responding to market changes.

Toyota Motor managing officer and TMAP-MS president Ryoichi Sasaki will serve concurrently as president of TMAP-EM.

Thailand :DHL retail outlet opens in Chiang Mai

DHL, the world's leading express and logistics company, yesterday announced the launch of an innovative retail strategy with DHL Servicepoint, a convenient, accessible and user-friendly retail outlet concept targeted at tourists and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Chiang Mai.

The opening of the second upcountry branch follows the successful launch of the first one last August in Pattaya. The opening of this new outlet is part of DHL's commitment to expand its service continuously nationwide. DHL Servicepoint is modelled after the concept of a walk-in retail outlet where customers can drop off their shipments.

Herbert Vongpusanachai, regional manager for Indochina, said DHL continued to expand its service coverage into major cities across Thailand, especially tourist spots, because the company saw the potential of new customers in tourists and middle- and upper-class Thai customers. The company also targets local SMEs that are key components in the country's economic development by offering cost-effective products and services that will help them compete effectively in the international marketplace.

China :FedEx Express to cover 200 mainland cities

FedEx Express announced yesterday that it would offer next-business-day domestic express service in China from May 28.

Combined with the company's industry-leading international express service, the new domestic offering will connect businesses both within China and around the world.

FedEx connects more than 90 per cent of China's gross domestic product to the rest of the world through its global network.

The new domestic services, expected to be fully operational in June, will serve China's burgeoning market with next-business-day, time-definite delivery service to 19 cities and a day-definite service to more than 200 cities throughout the country. Real-time package-status tracking will let customers know where their shipments are each step of the way.