A year after Thailand's worst floods in seven decades devastated the economy, currency forecasters are betting the baht will outperform its Southeast Asian peers next quarter as Japanese companies commit more funds.
Nissan Motor Co., Japan's second-largest automaker, pledged last month to invest 11 billion baht ($358 million) in a second factory as the government is making efforts to prevent a repeat of the disaster that closed plants and deluged industrial estates. Toyota Motor Corp., Asia's biggest car manufacturer, announced it will boost production in Thailand to cater to increasing demand in emerging markets.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is spending more than 2 trillion baht to construct roads, bridges, drainage systems and flood barriers to spur growth that economists predict at almost 15 percent this quarter, compared with a 9 percent contraction in the year-earlier period. The currency may appreciate 1.5 percent by the end of March, beating gains of 1.2 percent in the Indonesian rupiah, 0.9 percent in the Malaysian ringgit and 0.5 percent in the Singapore dollar, according to Bloomberg surveys based on total returns, including interest income.
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