On Wednesday, Thailand’s new Finance Minister, Pichai Chunhavajira, made the first significant move as a minister by stating that he would meet with the central bank governor on Thursday after the government and the Bank of Thailand had been arguing on a spat about the country’s monetary policy for months.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has urged the central bank to cut interest rates as he suggested that it would bolster the Thai economy, while the central bank showed no signs of agreement and held its key rate at 2.50%, with the next rate review being on June 12.
The Thai PM had to resort to holding a meeting with Thai commercial banks, which collectively came to the conclusion for the banks to carry out temporary voluntary rate cuts for vulnerable groups.
Meanwhile, Pichai has previously minimized the prolonged conflict, affirming that there are no intentions to replace the central bank’s governor or undermine its independence.
