The strengthening of the Thai baht against the USD is seen as an indication that the market is not expecting the Bank of Thailand (BOT) to implement a rate cut during the latest meeting.
On Wednesday, the USD dipped by 0.14% against the Thai baht, trading at THB36.29 per dollar following a 1.01% decrease on Tuesday.
Last week, the Thai baht had weakened to nearly THB37 against the dollar, triggered by speculations from some analysts who anticipated that the BOT would slash rates in April. This speculation was further fueled by comments from the Thai Prime Minister, suggesting that the central bank should reduce the cost of living for Thai citizens.
Chaiyot Jiwangkul, the assistant director of the analytical department at Krungsri Securities (KSS), expressed his belief that a rate cut is unlikely to happen during today’s meeting. However, he indicated that a rate cut could potentially occur before the end of the year.
Bloomberg and LSEG consensus forecast that the benchmark will remain at 2.50% in the second quarter with one cut coming in the third and another cut in the fourth.
