Thai Finance Minister Suchart Thada-Thamrongvech said on Monday that it might be desirable to let the baht weaken to support exports but he stressed such a policy would have to discussed by the government.

“Next year the economy may grow less than 4 percent. A solution may be an adjustment of foreign exchange management to make the baht weaker by 5 percent,” he told reporters.

But he said the idea needed to be discussed with Deputy Prime Minister Olarn Chaipravat first. Olarn has responsibility for the economy.

The baht was little changed from Friday at around 34.25/27 per dollar.

Last Friday the Bank of Thailand cut its 2008 economic growth forecast to 4.3-5.0 percent from 4.8-5.8 percent, citing concern over the impact of the global credit crisis.

The central bank expected growth in 2009 to be 3.8-5.0 percent and export growth to be 7-10 percent, down from the 20-23 percent estimated for 2008.

The export-led economy grew 4.8 percent last year.

Source: http://www.afxnews.com

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