Bank of Thailand Clarifies: Thailand on US Monitoring List Will Not Impact Baht Management

Chayawadee Chai-anant, Assistant Governor for Corporate Relations and Spokesperson for the Bank of Thailand (BOT), addressed the US Treasury's report that placed Thailand on the Currency Monitoring List. The primary reason is Thailand's current account balance, which showed a surplus of 3.8% of GDP from July 2567 (2024) to June 2568 (2025), meeting one of the three main criteria used by the US. Additionally, Thailand has a trade surplus with the US exceeding 15 billion dollars, resulting in the country meeting two out of three criteria and being included in the Monitoring List alongside nine other countries. However, being on this list does not mean Thailand is a Currency Manipulator. No country was classified as such in this report. Thailand was previously on the Monitoring List during 2020-2021 for 2-3 assessment periods, which did not impact its currency policy. Regarding concerns about baht management, the BOT sees no additional limitations. Their exchange rate policy focuses on managing "volatility" by preventing the baht from becoming too strong or too weak, maintaining overall flexibility and avoiding trade advantage manipulation. The report had no immediate impact on financial markets. When asked about the possibility of being upgraded to a currency manipulator, Chayawadee stated this is highly unlikely due to significant changes in global financial contexts, with almost no countries using fixed exchange rates or massive currency interventions. The US will continue to assess trading partners twice a year. The next evaluation will cover data from January to December 2568 (2025), with the report expected mid-year. Thailand may remain under observation as a major trading partner, with the current account surplus projected around 17.7 billion dollars or approximately 3% of GDP, pending final GDP calculations.