reader Posted November 6, 2019 Share Posted November 6, 2019 From Bloomberg Financial The Bank of Thailand cut its benchmark interest rate for the second time in three months and said it will ease rules on outflows to curb a surging currency. Five of the seven Monetary Policy Committee members voted to cut the key rate by a quarter-percentage point to 1.25%, the central bank said in a statement. That matches a record low and was in line with the forecasts of 16 of the 26 economists in a Bloomberg survey. Officials told reporters in Bangkok that the central bank is worried about the strength of the baht, which may continue to weigh on the economy. The bank will ease rules on outflows and consider further steps to rein in the currency, they said. The baht extended losses, falling as much as 0.7% to 30.399 per dollar, and was at 30.327 as of 3 p.m. in Bangkok. Thai authorities are stepping up monetary and fiscal support to spur an economy that’s on course for its weakest growth in five years in 2019. The baht has gained more than 8% against the dollar in the past year, the best performer in emerging markets, curbing exports and tourism in the trade-reliant nation. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-06/thailand-cuts-interest-rate-to-record-low-to-rein-in-currency vinapu 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reader Posted November 15, 2019 Author Share Posted November 15, 2019 Despite the BOT’s recent interest rate cut aimed at dampening the surging baht, exchange rates remained mired near the 30 bht to the USD. This is what it looked like at Super Rich (Silom Complex) at 11 a.m. A quick check of the banks in the complex showed some offering as low as 29.86. On Tuesday I got 30.32. vinapu 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinapu Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 at least they are giving 30, sigh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reader Posted December 18, 2019 Author Share Posted December 18, 2019 From Bloomberg News Thailand Wants More First-Time Visitors as They Spend More Thailand will try to ease the pressure on tourism from a surging currency by targeting more first-time visitors because they are bigger spenders. “First-timers spend 10% to 20% more than repeat tourists and at the same time, we can build a new customer base,” Yuthasak Supasorn, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, said in an interview in Bangkok on Tuesday. The state agency’s goal is to increase first-time visitors to more than 10 million in 2020, or about a quarter of overall arrivals, from 10% now. It’s focusing marketing efforts on regions such as Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. Next year’s targets include a record 41.8 million arrivals generating 2.22 trillion baht ($73 billion) in receipts, both up roughly 5% from 2019. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-12-18/thailand-seeks-more-first-time-visitors-as-currency-saps-tourism?srnd=well-spent ============================================================= From Bloomberg News Thailand Central Bank Holds Rate as Growth Forecasts Lowered The Bank of Thailand held its benchmark interest rate steady at an all-time low and cut its forecasts for economic growth, saying it was gauging whether further efforts were needed to restrain the local currency. The central bank kept its policy rate at 1.25% on Wednesday in a unanimous decision. All 23 economists in a Bloomberg survey predicted a hold after two rate cuts earlier this year. “A key takeaway from this meeting is that the central bank’s primary reaction function in the near term will be the Thai baht,” HSBC Holdings Plc economist Noelan Arbis said after the decision. Concerns about baht strength “were more prominent at today’s meeting than concerns regarding growth or inflation.” Authorities have been struggling to temper gains in the currency, which has climbed more than 8% against the dollar over the past year, hurting Thailand’s export-oriented economy. Aside from rate cuts, the central bank has imposed measures to counter short-term inflows and relaxed rules to spur outflows. Bank of Thailand Assistant Governor Titanun Mallikamas told reporters the Monetary Policy Committee will monitor how the baht responds to those steps and decide if it needs to do more. The currency fell slightly after the decision, from 30.243 to the dollar to 30.264, while local equities were little changed. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-12-18/thai-central-bank-holds-rate-steady-as-it-keeps-eye-on-growth?srnd=fixed-income Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinapu Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 12 hours ago, reader said: Thailand will try to ease the pressure on tourism from a surging currency by targeting more first-time visitors because they are bigger spenders. “First-timers spend 10% to 20% more than repeat tourists........ obviously they have no idea about spending patterns of some our members here including humble nobody myself. only explanation I'd buy is that first times are more prone to succumb to scams thus spending or rather losing more money. I suspect it's one of those 71.59 % of statistics made on the spot llz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ggobkk Posted December 21, 2019 Share Posted December 21, 2019 When I was at MBK in November I saw a sign saying Super Rich was about to open near the central bank of escalators. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
