BANGKOK, Thailand – A research executive at Kasikorn Research Center revealed that the Thai baht closed the market at 32.39 per U.S. dollar on September 27, compared to 32.56 the previous day. The baht initially weakened in the morning but later strengthened following the yen’s surge, which was buoyed by the election victory of Shigeru Ishiba, former Defense Minister of Japan, as leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Ishiba’s policies support the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) tightening of monetary policy.
The U.S. dollar saw limited support as markets awaited U.S. inflation data set to be released later in the evening. Foreign investors sold net 1.8 billion baht in Thai stocks and 8.6 billion baht in bonds.
For the following week, the baht is projected to move between 32.10-32.70 per U.S. dollar. Key factors to watch include the Bank of Thailand’s August economic report, statements from the Federal Reserve Chair, foreign investment trends, global gold prices, and other regional currencies. Major U.S. economic indicators to be tracked include the PMI and ISM indexes, employment data, and the job market’s JOLTS report. Additionally, global markets will watch for PMI data from China, Japan, the Eurozone, and the UK, as well as Q2 GDP from the UK and September inflation in the Eurozone.
