Thailand's trade surplus hit a record high of 1.74 billion dollars in November, a 115 per cent jump over October's surplus of 810 million, DPA QUOTED officials as saying Thursday. According to the latest Commerce Ministry figures, Thailand's exports last month amounted to 11.87 billion dollars, up 20.7 per cent year-on-year, while imports in November reached 10.13 billion, up 3.5 per cent year-on-year. The surge in November exports has boosted Thailand's trade surplus to 2.19 billion for the January to November period, said Rachane Potjanasuntorn, director-general of the Department of Export Promotion. Thailand's total exports during the first eleven months of this year amounted to 118.99 billion dollars, up 17.2 per cent, while imports reached 116.80, up 7.5 per cent, compared with the same period in 2005. The country's strong export performance, driven chiefly by electronics, automobiles and agriculture products, has attracted a huge inflow of short term foreign investment in the stocks and bonds market, leading to a 17 per cent appreciation of the baht currency. On Monday the Bank of Thailand, worried that a strong baht would undermine the country's exports, slapped restrictions on inflows of foreign exchange in an effort to halt the appreciation of the baht currency. The capital controls, which forced investors to place 30 per cent of their foreign exchange into one-year non-interest earning reserves, on Tuesday led to panic selling in the Stock Exchange of Thailand (BOT) which lost nearly 15 per cent of its value in one day. The crash forced the government to revoke the foreign exchange controls on investments intended for the stock market and foreign direct investments, but they remain in place for investments in bonds and borrowing. BOT Governor Tarisa Watanagase on Thursday said the reserve requirement on short-term capital inflows was a temporary measure that could be scrapped as soon as the baht's volatility eased. Thai exporters have said their products can remain competitive at 36 baht to the dollar but will lose out to other suppliers if the baht strengthens to 32 to 33 baht to the dollar.
