On 2/18/2023 at 6:14 AM, nigelforbes said:

It's Baht, the Bitcoin of Asia, the currency, not the country, sheesh!

No, it's exactly what I said.. As in you are the bitcoin of language.. 

Definition of bitcoin:  something overhyped and sold to the ignorant. Something promised but cannot deliver.  "As in Thailand is the bitcoin of Asia".

 

Edited February 19, 20233 yr by Gknrd

4 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

Yes ikke, it's from the Thai Central Bank, who else would commission a study of Thai exports!!!

I thought so.... very reliable....55555

 

On 2/18/2023 at 5:05 AM, Gknrd said:

Thailand the Bitcoin of Asia. 

THB was manipulated and the .. wait for it... united states insisted that they change their policies otherwise it would be on the list of manipulated currencies which would be far worse.

Contact the U.S. government if anyone is unhappy with the THB the last 10 or so years.  

6 hours ago, Blumpie said:

THB was manipulated and the .. wait for it... united states insisted that they change their policies otherwise it would be on the list of manipulated currencies which would be far worse.

Contact the U.S. government if anyone is unhappy with the THB the last 10 or so years.  

Read the link below and see the chart, you will change your thinking on that subject:

 

https://www.cfr.org/article/tracking-currency-manipulation

7 hours ago, Gknrd said:

No, it's exactly what I said.. As in you are the bitcoin of language.. 

Definition of bitcoin:  something overhyped and sold to the ignorant. Something promised but cannot deliver.  "As in Thailand is the bitcoin of Asia".

 

Spoken like a true, slightly jaded expat who has lost perspective, somebody who 20+ years ago, even 10 or 15 years ago, couldn't possibly believe that Thailand was going to continue to be successful, it was all a flash in the pan and the Baht was going to collapse, after all, 55 or 60 was way too strong and simply wasn't justified.....I remember those days well!

 

You have to hand it to them, love them or loathe them, the country has done an excellent job of marketing itself and recovering from the Asian crash of 1997.

 

In 1997, at the time of the crash, there were 5 mill. tourists per year, in 2019 there was 40 mill. In 1997, GDP was USD 113 bill., in 2019 it was USD 540 bill. In 1997, over 40% of the population was below the poverty level, today it's about 7%.  In 1997, exports were USD 5 bill. month, during a couple of months last year they reached USD 26 bill. I was here from 1995 and there's no contrast between then and now. From a Thai perspective, that promise has been delivered upon and then some, it's not bitcoin, it's gold ingots.

 

What can be said of the tourists perspective? The country is be much cheaper than their home country, that's a big win, it's also much hotter, that's a seriously big win, especially in the winter. Everything is very different from back home so there's novelty value, the food can be very good, there's two more wins. The scenery can be wonderful, the people are easy going and always smile, the infrastructure is decent so it's easy to get around and there's plenty of contrasts, mountains to beaches....win, win, win win. Plus, the guys can get laid for peanuts, by a beautiful woman or man too no less, and it's easy! 

 

The downsides? the beaches/sea could be cleaner but pollution's a problem everywhere these days, even back in Cornwall, Deven and Cumbria; they may pay more than the locals for some things but it's still pretty cheap compared to back home, as far they are concerned, it's very affordable (have you seen the prices in Venice and Singapore lately); electric cables are strung along the sides of the road and the pavements are uneven, that's part of the charm and novelty value. At least there aren't homeless drug addicts living on downtown streets and it's safe to walk around any time of day or night without getting knifed or mugged.

 

Is all of that overhyped and sold to the ignorant? Not from a tourist perspective it's not, only from the perspective of a jaded expat is that true. And you know, there are times when I feel the same way, but then I look at things a little more objectively and the events of the past 25 years. It isn't perfect by a long shot but it's pretty damned good.

 

https://tradingeconomics.com/thailand/poverty-headcount-ratio-at-national-poverty-line-percent-of-population-wb-data.html

 

https://tradingeconomics.com/thailand/gdp

 

https://tradingeconomics.com/thailand/exports