The weak baht is benefiting Thailand's exports and tourism despite its negative impact on the price of imported energy, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said yesterday.
He was commenting on the baht's plunge to an 11-month low against the US dollar at 37.095 earlier yesterday.
The depreciation wasn't all bad as it is beneficial to the country's exports and tourism, which normally contribute to 50% and 20% of gross domestic product (GDP), respectively, said Mr Srettha, who is also the finance minister.
At the moment, there is no need for the government to intervene regarding the baht's value while the Bank of Thailand is closely monitoring and handling the situation, said the PM. The weak baht may negatively impact the price of imported oil and other related costs, but since Thailand still relies heavily on imported energy, the country cannot do much in the short term to avoid the impact of high prices.
Mr Srettha also denied that the government was singling out the Defence Ministry with its policy to slash budgets for "unnecessary" projects. He was responding to rumours he had put the brakes on armed forces spending in the 2024 fiscal year.