Thailand’s exports are unlikely to achieve 10% growth next year if the government leaves the baht’s appreciation unchecked, exporters warn.
“Ongoing baht strength will harm Thai shipments and weaken our competitiveness,” said Pornsil Patchrintanakul, deputy secretary-general of the Board of Trade.
Mr Pornsil was one of a group of leading executives from more than 50 trade associations who yesterday met with Veerasak Jinarat, the vice-minister for Commerce.
The baht, quoted yesterday at 33.35 to the US dollar, is currently trading at a 14-month high and is up 4.4% since January.
Exporters said the baht has appreciated significantly faster against the dollar than competing currencies such as the Chinese yuan or the Vietnamese dong, hurting Thailand’s trade competitiveness. (Bangkok Post)