Thailand’s rice exports are expected to recover slightly from an estimated 5.8 million tonnes in 2020, which was the lowest in 20 years due to weak global purchasing power caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, a container shortage and the strong baht.
The Thai National Shippers' Council (TNSC) on August 12 asked the Bank of Thailand to seek ways to relieve pressure on exports as the baht continues to strengthen.
Thailand’s rice sector is enduring one of its most difficult periods as a strong baht has made its exports uncompetitive, said Chookiat Ophaswongse, Honorary President of the Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA).
This is a tough year for Thailand’s rice sector due to prolonged droughts in the northeast and strong baht (THB), said Honorary President of the Thai Rice Exporters Association Chookiat Ophaswongse.
The Bank of Thailand is preparing measures to control short-term capital inflows, while continuing to relax restrictions on outflows to cope with the strong baht, according to minutes of a policy meeting last month.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has lowered its estimate for tourism revenue growth in 2019 from 10 percent to 9.5 percent due to global slowdown, strong baht and rising fuel prices.
The Thai baht has staged a strong recovery against US dollar after suffering a brief sell-off earlier this year, but the Thai Government is increasingly worried that continual strength in the currency could hit exports.
Thai exporters have asked the Government and the Bank of Thailand (BoT) to find ways to curb the baht’s rapid gains to maintain the country’s competitiveness in export.
The Thai Rice Exporters Association has expressed concern that the strong baht is likely to curb rice exports in 2018, Thai media reported on December 12.
Thailand’s exports in June enjoyed sustained growth of 11.7 percent year on year, despite its currency baht remained strong, according to the country’s Ministry of Commerce.
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