The Bank of Thailand is keeping close watch on a possible move by the United States to declare the country a currency manipulator, even though the kingdom is not currently on Washington's watchlist, governor Veerathai Santiprabhob said on Wednesday.
Mr Veerathai said the US decision not to include Thailand on the list showed that close cooperation between the two countries had convinced the Americans the kingdom does not manipulate the baht's exchange rate to benefit from trade.
But the central bank governor said Thailand still needed to follow the situation closely as the US could adjust the criteria used to scrutinise trade partners suspected of manipulating their currency to increase exports to the US.
His comment followed the US Treasury's publication of its list of countries under close watch for currency manipulation. The countries under scrutiny are China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.
The baht has been one of the best performers in emerging economies this year, raising the price of its exports.
Mr Veerathai has insisted Thailand has not manipulated the baht's exchange rate in order to gain competitive advantage for exporters.