Bangkok Auto Show Opens, First To Do So since Onset of Pandemic

Starting with the cancellation of the Geneva Motor Show last February (the event was scheduled for early March), auto shows dropped like flies around the world due to the coronavirus epidemic. We haven’t seen one take place since.

This week, however, the Bangkok Motor Show in the Thai capital has just gotten underway, after being postponed twice due to Covid-19 fears. How is this possible? Thailand has been one of the most successful countries in the battle against the coronavirus, something organizers pointed to with pride as the show opened.

Thailand has been free of locally transmitted cases of Covid-19 for about seven weeks and has eased restrictions on movement and gatherings in an effort to boost its economy.

"This is more than the motor show, but also Thailand's reputation because the other event organizers will be watching," said Prachin Eamlumnow, general manager of the event, which is officially named the Grand Prix International.

Thailand is the first country to host an auto show of this magnitude since the beginning of the pandemic, he told reporters. The Southeast Asian country is an important regional centre of automobile production. Its previous motor shows have drawn more than a million visitors.

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