BENGALURU- Thailand’s central bank will leave interest rates unchanged at their record low for the rest of the year to support economic recovery, but there are growing calls for an earlier rate rise amid inflationary risks, a Reuters poll found.
Driven by higher food and energy prices, inflation in Thailand rose to 4.65 percent in April and was expected to stay over 5 percent in the coming months, well above the Bank of Thailand’s (BOT) target range of 1 percent to 3 percent.
Despite those price pressures, economists forecast the central bank will keep policy accommodative to support growth until the end of 2022.
Following a drop in COVID-19 cases and eased restrictions, Thailand’s economy expanded a seasonally adjusted 1.1 percent in the March quarter from the previous three months, beating an expected 0.9 percent increase in a separate Reuters poll.
But China’s zero-COVID policy and low tourist arrivals still pose a challenge to the recovery.
All 20 economists in the May 30-June 3 poll predicted the central bank will hold its one-day repurchase rate at 0.50 percent at its June 8 meeting and keep it there for the remainder of the year.
