|
Baht likely to touch 44 against dollar Source : The Nation, Dow Jones Newswires Date : 14 March 2001 TIGHT swap liquidity in overseas markets as well as a rebounding yen saved the baht from plummeting yesterday, though dealers said the unit was likely to test the Bt44-a-dollar level by this weekend. The weak yen and the US economic retrenchment were two main negative factors pushing the Thai currency to hit bottom at Bt43.82 yesterday, while the proposed Thai Asset Management Corporation (TAMC) failed to cushion the unit. The baht fell to its lowest point from the opening level of between Bt43.69 and Bt43.74 in the morning session before heading up to between Bt43.55 and Bt43.65 in the afternoon. The strengthening yen had sapped the falling momentum of the Thai unit, which finally closed at between Bt43.55 and Bt43.59. The yen saw a correction from between ?120.61 and 120.71 on Monday against the dollar to between ?120.20 and ?120.30 yesterday morning before closing at ?120.06 at the end of the day. A dealer from Citibank`s Bangkok branch said the short-term interbank rate of the baht in offshore markets yesterday had shot up sharply from 3 per cent in the morning to 25 per cent in the afternoon as speculators turned to the spot market to buy the baht they needed to cover long-dollar positions. "That why the baht was stronger. And we don`t see any new factor in the domestic market to boost the unit, so we expect the currency to hover in the range of Bt43.45 to Bt43.85 by this weekend, while the yen may be around ?121 to ?122 a dollar," the dealer said. He added that considering the negative sentiment towards Japan`s politics and economy the yen could deteriorate further to ?123 or ?124 in the next two months and the Thai currency would not be able to avoid the plunge. A dealer from Bank of Ayudhya said the baht was expected to reach Bt44 this week, owing mainly to a lack of positive news. The news about TAMC, which will carve out non-performing loans from the Thai banking system, had been discounted by the market and failed to boost positive sentiment for the currency, the dealer said. However, a dealer from Bangkok Bank said that if the yen stabilises around ?120 to ?120.2 by this weekend the baht was not likely to drop to Bt44 this week. But he agreed that negative factors involving Japan could cause further yen deterioration. He believed that the baht would be quoted in a wide range of Bt43.40 to Bt43.80 by the end of this week. Earlier, Anusorn Tamajai, vice president of US-based Citibank`s Bangkok branch, said the Thai unit was expected to be traded around Bt44 to Bt45 within six months. The Bank of Thailand yesterday said the weakening baht was in line with other regional currencies, led by the yen`s bearish trend. "The baht weakening is on external factors only, and the baht is also more stabilised than other regional currencies. We have no need to intervene in the market," said Atchana Waiquamdee, central-bank senior director. Atchana said risky factors for the Thai economy were still largely external, especially the US economic slowdown, which had an impact on other Asian countries as well. Atchana said the US stock market had been hit by heavy selling in high-technology stocks, which had had a negative impact on Thai stocks. Yesterday afternoon the Stock Exchange of Thailand Index was down 4.53 points, or 1.5 per cent, at 300.34 points. The index rebounded to close at 302.76 points, dipping 2.11 points for the day. BY JIWAMOL KANOKSILP |
|
| aus der Diskussion: | Waste or make money in Thailand |
| Autor (Datum des Eintrages): | BodyG (14.03.01 09:11:39) |
| Beitrag: | 522 von 611 (ID:3095088) |
| Alle Angaben ohne Gewähr © wallstreetONLINE | |