Thailand should not rush to cut interest rates: PM

[BANGKOK] Thailand should not rush to cut interest rates, Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Tuesday, backing market expectations that the central bank will leave policy unchanged this week.

"The MPC is ready to adjust (the rate) but it wants to monitor fund inflows and outflows first," he told reporters, referring to the central bank's monetary policy committee (MPC), which will meet on Wednesday.

"Now our (rate) is 2 per cent ... Cutting it too quickly is not good," he added.

Sixteen of 21 economists in a Reuters poll predict the one-day repurchase rate will be left at 2.0 per cent at Wednesday's MPC meeting. But the five others see a cut as the economy struggles to gain traction.

REUTERS