Thailand’s central bank, finance ministry, and Securities and Exchange Commission are set to hold a briefing on the baht at 06:30 GMT on Tuesday, following a sharp rise in the currency, the finance ministry said.
The baht has strengthened by 10% against the U.S. dollar this year, making it Asia’s best-performing currency. It has now reached its highest level against the dollar in more than four years. After the announcement of the briefing, the baht traded at 31.16 per dollar, slightly down from around 31.05 earlier.
The central bank has already taken steps to curb the baht’s rapid gains. It has increased scrutiny of foreign exchange transactions linked to gold trading and instructed commercial banks to closely monitor foreign currency inflows.
Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said the currency’s strength is hurting Thailand’s economy. Last week, the central bank urged the finance ministry to regulate gold trading, noting that gold flows have a significant impact on currency movements.
On Monday, the bank announced it had met with gold traders to explain new guidelines requiring detailed reporting of transactions to the central bank, including trades conducted online. The reporting requirement will apply to gold traders with an average annual trading value of at least 10 billion baht ($321 million) over the past five years.
The measures are designed to help the central bank assess ways to reduce the impact of gold trading on the baht. Traders will also be required to keep transaction records available for inspection by regulators.
