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"Although consumption and investment might weaken in the second half, the latest strong export data prove that our economy is not that bad," bank President Prasarn Trairatvorakul told reporters, referring to the 27.4 percent export growth in June.

"Growth momentum from the first half should possibly boost our lending to the top end of the target at 15 percent," he added.

He surrendered to the authorities after leading march of 1,500 protesters to police headquarters in Bangkok.

Mr Sondhi has denied any wrong doing, and his lawyers say the charges are politically motivated.

rlier rally amid continued fears for economic growth, but Japan bucked the trend to surge nearly three percent.

The Tokyo bourse closed up 2.98 percent after reopening following a holiday on Monday, when many Asian markets had posted strong gains partly due to last week's oil price tumble.

There were 535 participants from 97 countries, according to the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology.

The two who struck gold were Pasin Manurangsi from the Bangkok Christian College and Warat Suksompong from Triam Udom Suksa school.

Mr Thaksin said Mr Somkiat tarnished his and his family's reputation when accusing him of attempting to bring down the constitutional monarchy and tampering with the justice system to absolve himself of malpractice allegations.

The lawsuit also names ASTV Co and Thaiday.com.

Mr Thaksin also sought an injunction prohibiting Mr Somkiat from making false accusations and the two firms from broadcasting Mr Somkiat's comments.

Altogether 6,899 companies were shut down in the January to June period, with 1,681 firms closing in June alone, according to figures released by the Business Development Department.

In his letter to Singapore`s Foreign Minister George Yeo late Monday, Hor Namhong asked that the group comprise the foreign ministers of Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Laos.

The list was topped by New York for the eighth consecutive year, followed by San Francisco, Chicago, Charleston, S.C., and Santa Fe, N.M. Next were three Canadian cities, Quebec City, Montreal and Vancouver, with Savannah ninth on the list and the British Columbia city of Victoria at No. 10.

Now 18, Ponchalearm's changes are all the more striking as he sits, slim and ladylike in a top of white satin and black lace, next to his stern and athletic twin brother.

Ponchalearm's aunt absent-mindedly runs her fingers through his waist-length auburn hair extensions as the family quietly discusses whether Ponchalearm is ready for a sex change operation.

"It's my life and I've decided that I must do it before university," Ponchalearm says. "I feel happy, it's fun, I can express myself as I want. I'm lucky I have friends who understand me."

As he speaks, his mother softly cuts in to express her concern that he is too young to understand the long-term consequences of his decision.

"Let's consider this, you're still too young," she says. "I want him to take time to grow up a bit."

For two years Ponchalearm has yearned for the operation and at 18 he has reached the age at which, under a new Thai health regulation, he can legally make the decision himself.

The regulation was introduced in April after health authorities became alarmed by stories and the subsequent public debate about underage boys seeking -- and receiving -- castrations as the first step toward gender reassignment surgery.

Some gay activists and parents worried about potential side effects of the operation on bodies that are still growing believe the age at which youths can independently make the decision to be castrated should be raised to 20.

One soldier was wounded when a grenade exploded at the outpost late on Saturday in Pattani, one of three southernmost provinces where more than 3,000 people have been killed in separatist attacks since 2004.

Also in Pattani, three Muslim villagers were shot dead by suspected militants, police said.

Thai authorities feared a spike in violence after the unknown Thailand United Southern Underground announced a "ceasefire" last week that was dismissed by army officials and security experts who said its leaders had no influence in the region.

The Thai army identified the group's leader as Malipeng Khan, a separatist active in the 1980s who had failed to unify insurgent factions in the region annexed by predominately Buddhist Thailand a century ago.

Since the latest violence erupted in 2004, the shadowy rebels have never revealed themselves publicly or claimed responsibility for the near daily gun and bomb attacks in the rubber-producing region bordering Malaysia.

Thai media attention has focused on Chettha Thanajaro, a former defense minister and leader of a minor party in Thailand's coalition government, who announced the "breakthrough" on Thursday after a year of talks with 11 separatist groups.

"It was somewhere between a cheap political ploy aimed at putting pressure on the Malay Muslim insurgents in the deep south, or a desperate bid for free publicity," the Nation newspaper said in an editorial on Friday.

Associated Press Writer

PREAH VIHEAR, Cambodia (AP) - Cambodia has informed the U.N. Security Council that Thai forces have violated its territory near an ancient World Heritage Site temple where hundreds of troops continued to face off Sunday.

Cambodia's permanent mission in New York submitted a letter to the chairman of the Security Council and the chairman of the General Assembly to ``draw their attention to the current situation on the Cambodian-Thai border,'' Information Minister Khieu Kanharith said.

The World Bank has urged Asian cities to come up with climate resilient programmes to safeguard people from natural hazards triggered by climate change and rising sea levels.

Coastal cities in Burma, China, Thailand and Vietnam are among the most vulnerable to rising sea levels, disaster response and climate change experts told a seminar on climate change impact reduction held by the World Bank in Pattaya this week.