BANGKOK (Oct 29):  Thailand's growth rate is too low and the bank will focus on supporting the economy, Bank of Thailand (BOT) governor Vitai Ratanakorn said on Thursday.

The weak baht has been supporting exporters and the economy, Vitai said.

The BOT's 2027 priorities are tackling household debt, improving credit access for small and medium-sized enterprises and tightening oversight over the growing and increasingly complex non-bank financial sector.

The SME measures include a credit portal, new credit-guarantee mechanisms and alternative data sharing to improve access and competition.

The central bank will roll out a new permit for Buy Now Pay Later financing expected by the end of the year.

A regulation to limit gold trading in cash to 10 million baht (US$296,912) will be announced in November, the bank said.

A day earlier, the central bank kept interest rates unchanged at 1.00%, as expected, with its next rate review on Dec 23.

The 1.00% policy rate remains appropriate, but rates could be raised if the economy becomes very strong or inflation does not fall by mid-year as expected, Vitai said.

He reiterated that interest rates alone could not fix structural problems.

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