Thailand's central bank raised its key interest rate modestly for a second straight meeting on Wednesday to tame 14-year high inflation and said it was willing to adjust the size and timing of rate moves as necessary.
The Bank of Thailand's (BOT) monetary policy committee, voted unanimously to increase the one-day repurchase rate (THCBIR=ECI) by 25 basis points to 1.00%. The move was forecast by 22 out of the 25 economists surveyed, with three having predicted a bigger half-point rise.
The BOT said monetary policy should be "normalised in a gradual and measured manner" as it stuck to its 2022 growth forecast and said inflation had peaked, but it also left the door open for bigger rate hikes if necessary.
"The committee judges that the Thai economy will continue to recover but with increased inflation risks," it said in a statement.
"The committee is ready to adjust the size and timing of policy normalisation should the growth and inflation outlook shift from the current assessment."
The recovery of Southeast Asia's second-largest economy has lagged that of other countries as its vital tourism sector only just started to rebound, allowing the central bank to go slowly on rate hikes.
In sharp contrast, major central banks are embarking on the most aggressive round of rate rises in decades to tame soaring inflation, sparking fears in financial markets of a global recession.
