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Thailand keeps interest rate unchanged at record low

The Bank of Thailand (BoT) last week decided to keep key interest rate unchanged at a record low for a second straight meeting, as widely expected, on signs of improvement in the economy after the easing of measures to contain the coronavirus outbreak.
Thailand keeps interest rate unchanged at record low ảnh 1The Bank of Thailand (BoT) (Photo: https://www.bangkokpost.com/)

Bangkok (VNA) - TheBank of Thailand (BoT) last week decided to keep key interest rate unchanged at arecord low for a second straight meeting, as widely expected, on signs ofimprovement in the economy after the easing of measures to contain thecoronavirus outbreak.

According to the Bangkok Post, the central bank’s MonetaryPolicy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to keep the one-day repurchase ratesteady at a record low of 0.50 percent, after having cut it three times thisyear to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic on tourism and domesticconsumption.

The Thai economy is forecast to contract the most on record thisyear, shrinking 8.1 percent, with any recovery taking as long as almost twoyears, according to outgoing BoT Governor Veerathai Santiprabhob. The economicdamage could reach as much as 3 trillion THB because of the hit to Thailand’sgrowth drivers, tourism and exports.

With the policy rate hovering close to zero, the central bank is running out ofconventional monetary policy space to spur the economy and boost prices asdeflation sets in. The bank has said it’s studying options like large-scaleasset purchases and some form of yield-curve control.

At the same time, authorities are worried about the currency’sgains, which threaten to undermine any recovery in exports. The baht has gainedmore than 4 percent against the dollar in the past three months, the bestperformer in Asian currencies tracked by Bloomberg./.
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