BOT: Thai Baht to be More Volatile in 2010

Published : January 05, 2010 :: 13:01:44 [ 889 views ]

Bank of Thailand (BoT) Governor Tarisa Wattanagase on Monday allowed that the baht would fluctuate more heavily this year since foreign capital is set to flow into Asia in a larger amount.

Bangkok, the 5th of January 2010 [TNA]: She said liquidity of many countries began returning to normal as confidence in Asia’s economies is higher than in those of other regions.

However, since the global economy is in the first stages of recovery, economic confidence remains fragile. It could be shaken by either good and bad news, as well as local risk factors.

She said Thailand’s central bank has an approach to containing the volatility of the baht. It needs not provide new measures to supervise the baht, but the private sector must have tools to hedge against foreign currency risks. Mrs Tarisa emphasized that the central bank had not found any speculation in the baht.

She predicted that the inflation rate in the first and second quarters this year would be higher than that in December last year, which stood at 3.5 per cent, due to higher fuel prices and the government’s measures to cut consumer living costs.

The governor said the BoT had closely monitored the inflation rate and the economic recovery, which are key factors in directing the interest rate.

Meanwhile BoT Deputy Governor Atchana Waiquamdee said the suspension of investment projects in the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate had a negative impact on the economy, but it could be compensated if the government managed to stimulate the economy concretely.

She expressed concern about uncertainties in the government’s investment policy, saying it could have psychological impacts on investor confidence in the long run. (TNA)

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