BANGKOK, 29 July 2012 – The Thai central bank has signaled further interest rate cuts amidst continued crisis in the west.
Bank of Thailand (BoT) Governor Prasarn Trairatvorakul said that the latest decision by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to maintain the benchmark interest rate at 3 percent is a signal that the central bank will be pursuing a more relaxed monetary policy from now.
Mr. Prasarn stated that such an approach is needed to allow the BoT to follow up on the impact of the crisis in Europe and the US on Thailand, as such problems take time to be solved.
Regarding the interest rate hike by commercial banks, Mr. Prasarn reckoned that such a policy is only to help them compete and will not distort market mechanism.
And despite continued growth in the banking industry, the BoT chief stated that there is nothing to worry about and the central bank will be keeping a close eye on all involved.
