Another Thailand bank has said it has better hopes for the Kingdom and its economy in 2016.
Bank of Ayudhya, better known as Krungsri, has predicted the Thai economy next year will likely expand by between 3.2 percent and 3.5 percent, and the Thai baht will move in a range of THB 36.50 to THB 37.50 versus the U.S. dollar.
Head of Global Markets Group at Bank of Ayudhya, Tak Bunnag, said the Thai economy would likely grow by 2.9 percent in 2015, with investment by the public sector as a main driver. Other factors that have positively impacted the Thai economy this year include the growing tourism sector as well as low oil price and interest rates, the banker added.
The fragile global economic recovery, agricultural product price drop, high household debt and volatile financial markets have been among the Thai economy’s negative factors during 2015.
As for the direction of the Thai currency, it will have a tendency to weaken in the next three months.
The bank also predicted that the U.S. would increase its policy interest rates for the first time mid-December 2015, resulting in gradual strengthening of the Thai baht.
It added that Thailand’s benchmark rate would be stable at 1.5 percent, with a tendency to rise at the end of 2016 when the economy saw even more of a recovery.