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Thai central bank maintains policy rate at 1.5 pct

Xinhua, November 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of Thailand (BOT) on Wednesday voted unanimously to retain the policy rate at 1.5 percent.

The MPC made the decision based on the assessment that monetary conditions and exchange rate remained supportive to the economic recovery, despite the Thai economy continuing to face downside risks, especially from the global economy, structural limitations and uncertainty in the global financial markets, said a statement posted on the BOT's website.

According to the Thai central bank, in the third quarter of 2015, the country's domestic demand improved slightly on the back of increased spending on non-durable goods and services, as well as investment in certain business sectors.

Meanwhile, public expenditure increased, and additional fiscal stimulus measures should provide some support to the recovery, it said.

However, it added, the Thai economy faces more negative factors from abroad, which weigh down Thailand's merchandise exports and investors' confidence.

Headline inflation continued to stay in negative territory due to a substantial fall in oil prices from last year, but is projected to rise gradually, and to turn positive in the first quarter of next year, the bank noted.

In addition, deflationary risks remain contained as demand continues to expand and core inflation is still positive, consistent with medium-term inflation expectations of the public, it said. Enditem