Gaybutton Posted December 12, 2006 Posted December 12, 2006 Note from GB: The baht opened against the US Dollar today at 35.06 and closed at 35.18. That was the actual exchange rate. These articles usually bring up the impact the strength of the baht has on exports from Thailand, but I never see these articles bring up an impact on tourism. Today is right in the middle of the high season. I was at the beach yesterday. There were no more people than I normally see in the middle of low season. I understand it's been like that for some time now. I have not seen any statistics that show how much of an impact the strength of the baht has on tourism, but my guess is that it is at least having some impact. Less tourists are coming and the ones that do come are spending less once they get here. The following appears in THE NATION: _____ Thai Baht Hits Nine-Year High Bangkok - The Thai baht hit a nine-year high Tuesday, peaking at 35.26 to the dollar, despite recent intervention from the Bank of Thailand (BoT) to try and slow down the soaring Thai currency. The baht moved in line with other Asian currencies except the Japanese yen against the weak US dollar, closing at 35.27-30, up against Monday's close of 35.46, traders said. BoT conceded that the baht went up "too quickly" and has continuously risen despite intervention from the central bank. "The baht has become so strong after the dollar and the yen have weakened," said the central bank's assistant governor Suchada Kirakul. "Capital inflows have continued moving into Asia, especially Thailand, on solid current account surplus," she told reporters, adding that the baht had risen 14 per cent since the beginning of this year. "We have stepped in to help manage the baht by monitoring the currency movements both in terms of trading volume and its value. Today the baht rose too quickly," she said. Exporters have asked the government to soften the baht, saying that the Thai currency's appreciation has outpaced regional rivals. But BoT played down the impact of the strong baht on exports. "The baht actually went up 9.3 per cent over the past two years which is the same levels of movement of other regional currencies," Suchada said. "Thai exports have remained competitive against shipments from our regional rivals," she said, adding that the baht is targeted to appreciate against the dollar by only 5.0 to 6.0 per cent this year as a whole. Analysts, however, expect the Thai baht to further appreciate despite the BoT intervention. "We target the baht to rise to 35.00 to the dollar pretty soon," a trader at a local bank told AFP. Agence France Presse Quote
Smiles Posted December 13, 2006 Posted December 13, 2006 " ... Today is right in the middle of the high season. I was at the beach yesterday. There were no more people than I normally see in the middle of low season ... " Perhaps they saw you first (Sorry ... joking. Couldn't help myself). Cheers .... Quote
Gaybutton Posted December 13, 2006 Author Posted December 13, 2006 Perhaps they saw you first (Sorry ... joking. Couldn't help myself). Heyyyy, I get it. That's another good one, Smiles. I used to love to tell those kinds of jokes too . . . right up until my 9th birthday. Quote
Gaybutton Posted December 13, 2006 Author Posted December 13, 2006 Here are the latest exchange rates for several currencies: Wednesday, December 13 Opening Rates: US Dollar: 35.08 Euro: 46.43 British Pound: 68.975 Australian Dollar: 27.4325 Canadian Dollar: 30.2825 Quote
Gaybutton Posted December 13, 2006 Author Posted December 13, 2006 Baht Appreciation to 35.26 to US Dollar is too Rapid, Says Central Bank BANGKOK, Dec 13 (TNA) The appreciation of the baht to 35.26 to the US dollar, the strongest in 9 years, in Monday Quote
