Thailand kept interest rates at record lows

In order to revive the tourism sector in the country and support the fragile recovery due to the covid-19 omicron, Thailand kept the interest rates unchanged.

The Central Bank of the country kept the policy rate at 0.5 percent. The forecast of the 24 economists participating in the Bloomberg survey was that there would be no change in interest rates.

Thus, the bank kept interest rates unchanged for 14 consecutive meetings. The bank has cut interest rates three times in 2020.

Inflation in the country rose to 3.23 percent in January, the highest level since April, exceeding the bank's target of 1 to 3 percent. At its meeting today, the Bank stated that the acceleration in inflation will continue in the first half of the year due to the increase in energy and food prices.

Covid-19 omicron cases are also on the rise in Thailand. The number of daily cases has been over 10,000 since February 5.

While the US Federal Reserve is preparing to raise interest rates, Southeast Asian economies are also facing the risk of capital outflows. Singapore has increased interest rates twice since October, and Indonesia, which will announce its interest rate decision tomorrow, has been hawking.