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Thai baht soars as officials consider resuming Test & Go schedule

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Thai baht soars as officials consider resuming Test & Go schedule

Thailand has seen a strengthening of its “baht” currency as expectations are high for the easing of quarantine for vaccinated visitors under the “Test & Go” scheme.

Enrollment for the entry-level program closed last month, but the Ministry of Health is proposing to resume the program. The public health secretary says registration for the scheme could resume on February 1, subject to approval by the CCSA’s Administrative Center for Covid19 Control.

Treasuries have moved up the curve in recent Asian hours as investors braced for a more aggressive Federal Reserve, with two-year yields reflecting short-term interest rate projections, above 1% for the first time since February 2020. With the exception of China (.SSEC) and the Philippines (.PSI) less than 0.5%, although Asian emerging equity markets were higher.

Doubts are mounting that the central bank will begin to tighten in March if markets do not expect a rate hike next week, as investors watch the Fed’s January 25-26 meeting. Previously, the baht rose a whopping 0.7% before reversing most of its gains to trade 0.3% higher. Equities (.SETI) also briefly hit a new record for the year.

The established OCBC analysts say “expect the baht to benefit from this feel-good development”.

“This push could well be speculative as there are still no signs that tourist flows will return in sufficient numbers to justify continued baht appreciation.”

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