No special measure planned to curb baht appreciation

BANGKOK, March 20 (TNA) - Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Kittirat Na-Ranong says that there has been no special measure planned by authorities concerned to curb the ongoing appreciation of the Thai baht. Kittirat told journalists of the update, after a meeting of economic ministers at Bangkok's Government House on Wednesday, quoting the Bank of Thailand (BOT) as reporting that the baht appreciation has resulted from rising capital inflows, as international investors appear to be confident in the Thai economy, following Fitch Ratings's recent upgrade of Thailand debt rating and satisfactory operational performances of listed firms in the country. Kittirat also ruled out the possibility of the government's imposition of a currency transaction tax (Tobin tax), noting that the administration will, rather, focus on keeping the national economy stable, through normal fiscal and financial measures which do no harms to the Thai economy. The baht ranged between 29.13 to 29.15 a US dollar later Wednesday, compared with its range of 29.27-29.29 baht a US dollar at its market opening time, resulting from active sales of US dollars.(TNA)