BANGKOK, 31 January 2013 The Prime Minister has assigned the Finance Minister to lead an effort to tackle the impact of the stronger baht on business operators.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong revealed on Wednesday that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has held a meeting with the ministries of Finance, Labor and Industry as well as the Bank of Thailand (BoT), the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) and the state committee tasked with the assistance for SMEs.
Mr. Kittiratt stated that the talks focused on the solutions for the impact of the new 300-baht daily minimum wage and the baht fluctuation.
At the meeting, the BoT informed that the baht has been fluctuating because of the short-term inflow of foreign funds into the capital market while all sides agreed that a push for Thai investors to make more overseas investments will be a long-term solution to the stronger baht issue.
The Finance Minister said that the PM has assigned him to discuss with the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee and related agencies to quickly rein in the problem while keeping a close eye on speculative trade.
