GFC accelerates in second half, expanding into foreign markets and new business joint ventures

Apple has announced its most advanced health and fitness experience yet, introducing the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 with a new Health Sensing System that delivers the most accurate heart rate sensing in a wearable, along with a redesigned Health app powered by Apple Intelligence. The new watches measure heart rate every five seconds and HRV as often as every five minutes, 24 times more frequently, and introduce a readiness score from 0 to 10 with recommendations like Recover or Go For It. The redesigned Health app, coming later this year with iOS 27, adds an Insights tab and a Longevity tab featuring Health Age, which compares users' metrics to their chronological age. Users can also schedule and purchase lab tests covering over 50 biomarkers for $119 at approximately 2,000 Quest Diagnostics locations in the U.S., and new movement assessments use the iPhone camera and Apple Watch for at-home evaluations. The watches also support perimenopause and menopause tracking, and watchOS 27 will be available starting September 14 for Apple Watch Series 9 or later, Apple Watch SE 3, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later.

Asset World Corp Public Company Limited (AWC) has announced a partnership with VitalLife Scientific Wellness Center, under Bumrungrad Hospital, to open "AYA Wellness Club" at Empire, Thailand's first comprehensive health and lifestyle destination in the heart of Bangkok. The club will operate 24 hours a day, offering preventive health programs, longevity, spa, dining, hydrotherapy, heat therapy, and fitness, with VitalLife serving as advisor on preventive healthcare and Longevity Medicine. Located in Empire, which spans over 48,000 square meters and is certified LEED Gold, WELL Core Platinum, and others, the first phase is set to open in 2026, with full operations in 2027.

The Trade Policy and Strategy Office revealed that health care and anti-aging trends will push global consumer spending on medical goods and services to as high as 6.7 trillion US dollars by 2040, more than doubling compared with the past 15 years. In 2025, Thailand's retail value in the herbal product group was 1.3575 billion US dollars, ranking 11th in the world, and is expected to reach 1.8364 billion US dollars by 2030. Consumers are willing to pay at least 20 percent more if products have scientific test results to support them. The Trade Policy and Strategy Office proposed four urgent strategies: upgrading agricultural extracts to the medical level, penetrating everyday products and personalized nutrition, integrating technology for personalized health care, and linking the service ecosystem with health tourism under the Agri-Wellness Synergy concept to transform Thailand's agricultural sector into a health economy.