SMEs urged to pay greater attention to forex risk management

PATTAYA, Aug 20 (TNA) – Small- and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) should pay greater attention to managing their currency exchange risks, according to the Bank of Thailand (BoT).

Speaking at a panel discussion on “The Economic Outlook and Ways to Manage Foreign Exchange Risks” held to enhance knowledge for operators in the eastern region, BoT Assistant Governor Suchada Kirakul said governments and central banks of many countries had implemented the economic stimulus scheme and injected liquidity into financial institutions in a record high amount to fight the global economic crisis.

Although key economic figures showed a sign of economic recovery and stability, it needed to take sometime for the global economy to resuscitate.

She said the Thai economic conditions had become stable as exports of goods and services had begun to pick up.

However, the global economy would continue to expand at a slower pace than in the past. So, SMEs running the international trade must give more importance to business planning and the foreign exchange risk management, the assistant central bank governor said.

Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) Executive Vice President Sethaput Suthiwart-Narueput, who heads the SCB Economic Intelligence Center, projected many economic indicators showed the global economy had nearly bottomed out as the industrial production sector is set to pick up.

Mr Sethaput said he believed the Thai economy reached the bottom in the second quarter of this year and would gradually recover.

Overall, the economy for this year would shrink 4-4.5 per cent and turn to grow 3.5-4 per cent next year.

He said risk factors to the economy left unsolved include the sharp contraction of tourism, slow recovery of the global economy, and persistent political disturbances. (TNA)