FRIDAY BUG
Tough choice for MPC members
The past week was a crucial one for the seven members of the Monetary Policy Committee, who had to decide whether to keep bumping up the 14-day repurchase rate or leave it unchanged at 4.75 per cent.
Reporters were also under pressure to keep a close watch of every move of the committee members. If a word slipped out from the mouth of any of the seven members, it would be feverishly scrutinised to speculate on the chance of another interest rate hike.On Tuesday, Bank of Thailand Governor MR Pridiyathron Devakula relieved some of the tension as he walked down from his office for a relaxed conversation with reporters. He recalled that when he was studying at the Faculty of Economics of Thammasat University, he was once a member of a gang that always flirted with girls who walked past. The favourite hunting ground was a triangular intersection on the Thammasat campus, where the economics and journalism and mass communication faculties converged. And then he went on, telling stories of his undergraduate heyday. Although the reporters enjoyed Pridiyathorn's effort to relax the tension in the air, they didn't forget to transcribe his words and interpret that he was sending a signal for another hike. The Monetary Policy Committee faced a dilemma in choosing between the country's stability and economic growth. Even though the decision was made eventually on Wednesday, reporters witnessed the unusual acts of another committee member. National Economic and Social Development Board secretary-general Ampol Kitti-ampom usually walks out of the Bank of Thailand building with other members after finishing lunch together. But on Wednesday he left early. Instead of waiting for his car as usual, he quickly waved for a tuk-tuk, hopped in and sped off to his office without saying a word. Did he really need to leave so quickly, or was he upset about something?
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