BANGKOK, 3 July 2012 – Bank of Thailand (BoT) Governor Prasarn Trairatvorakul is set to hold a discussion concerning the policy interest rate in 3 weeks and has assured that any adjustment will be based on the economic condition.
Prior to a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee on July 25, 2012, Mr. Prasarn insisted that if the policy interest rate is adjusted during the meeting, the new rate will correspond to the economic climate at that time. The main focus of the discussion will cover the economic impact from the United States and Europe.
According to the BoT Governor, the interest rate is currently at 3%, which, he claimed, is in favor of the Thai economy, loan growth and consumer demands. This is expected to help lower this year’s headline inflation from an initial forecast of 3.5% to 3.3%. The reduction could also be attributed to the world economic downturn, which has brought down the demands and prices of consumer products, energy and oil.
Mr. Prasarn pointed out that although the inflation rate varies from one country to another, the Thai figure is considered similar to those of other countries in this region. He explained that the slight difference is due to each nation’s policy to keep the inflation low as a way to prevent an impact on their trading partners.
