bangkok feb 9 reuters  the following is a statement from the bank of thailand after it left its key interest rate steady at a record low of 050 on wednesday as expected by all 23 economists in a reuters poll read more piti disyatat secretary of the monetary policy committee mpc announced the outcome of the meeting on feb 9 as follows the committee voted unanimously to maintain the policy rate at 050 the committee assessed that the thai economy would continue to recover as the omicron variant would exert limited pressure on the public health system downside risk to growth improved however there remained a need to closely monitor developments of the pandemic going forward upside inflationary risks increased and headline inflation would accelerate in early 2022 owing to the rises in energy and raw food prices while demandside inflationary pressures remained subdued in line with the gradual recovery of household income there remained a need to monitor global energy prices and broadbased cost passthrough to goods and services the committee viewed that the continued accommodative monetary policy would help support economic growth and thus voted to maintain the policy rate in addition the ongoing financial and fiscal measures with the focus on rebuilding and enhancing potential growth would play an important part in bolstering the robust recovery of the labour market as well as the income of businesses and households the committee assessed that the thai economy in 2021 would expand faster than previously projected and the recovery would continue into 2022 driven by higher merchandise exports as well as a higher number of foreign tourist arrivals due to fasterthanexpected relaxation of travel restrictions however the recovery would remain fragile and uneven across sectors especially in tourism which was below prepandemic levels the committee would monitor developments of the labour market as well as the impact of higher living costs given that income had not fully recovered headline inflation in 2022 would be higher than previously assessed and could exceed the target range in the early part of the year this would be owing to price increases in certain sectors especially energy and raw food products meanwhile upside risks to inflation increased in particular cost passthrough from producers to consumer prices could increase if energy and raw food prices remain elevated for longer than expected or if the supply constraint problems broaden into other goods nevertheless the average inflation rate for the full year 2022 and mediumterm inflation expectations would remain within the target range furthermore there had not been an indication of broadbased increases in the prices of goods and services while demandside inflationary pressures remained subdued in the period ahead there remained a need to closely monitor developments of global energy prices and domestic goods and services prices as well as the possibility of growing wage pressures overall liquidity remained ample but liquidity distribution still varied across economic sectors longterm thai government bond yields rose primarily in tandem with us treasury yields on exchange rates the baht relative to the us dollar still exhibited volatile movements due to faster monetary policy normalization in advanced economies and the easing of domestic outbreak containment measures the committee would closely monitor developments in both global and domestic financial markets and continue to expedite the new foreign exchange ecosystem particularly through supporting smes in hedging against risks from exchange rate volatility the committee viewed that the government measures and policy coordination among government agencies would be critical to support the economic recovery public health measures should strike a balance between containing the outbreak and supporting the recovery of economic activities fiscal measures should support the economic recovery in a targeted manner with a focus on generating income and expediting measures to rebuild and enhance potential growth monetary policy should contribute to continued accommodative financial conditions overall financial and credit measures helped distribute liquidity to the affected groups in a targeted manner and reduce debt burden these measures included the special loan facility asset warehousing scheme and other measures by specialized financial institutions sfis in addition financial institutions should accelerate debt consolidation and debt restructuring in a sustainable manner through the scheme launched on september 3 2021 to have broader impacts and be consistent with borrowers longterm debt serviceability under the monetary policy framework with objectives of maintaining price stability supporting sustainable and fullpotential economic growth and preserving financial stability the committee continued to put emphasis on supporting the economic recovery the committee would closely monitor key factors affecting the economic outlook namely developments of the covid19 outbreak global energy prices higher cost passthrough as well as the adequacy of fiscal financial and credit measures the committee would stand ready to use appropriate monetary policy tools if necessary