What's Up With The Thai Baht?

[hopdafru]

PS: I believe I understand how gold can help economies / countries to stabilize currency / economy, it has apparently worked for centuries until we started having robots printing money and bidding against each-other every nanosecond...

What I'm trying to grasp is how to practically deal - as individuals - with the current situation and how it might evolve in the 'near' future.

I welcome sound suggestions and ideas with an open mind!

[Alfahane]

A simple answer. The very liberal socialists have broken the Western economies. They simply can no longer afford to provide for people who have no desire to work. Thailand hasn't gotten to that point, YET.

1. There is no single answer.

2. There is no simple answer.

3. You must be joking! Sounds like something FOX News would claim.

4. The main reason for the financial problems right now, which always stir up currency values, are the fact that CAPITALISTS owning and controlling credit institutions allowed reckless lending to people and even countries.

5. Currencies fluctuate in value all the time. A lot have happened in the last 5 years and that will undoubtfully affect currencies.

6. One, but not the only, of the reasons that people in western countries have unemployment problems is that those countries allow cheap imports and outsourcing. Who paved the way? Organisations that have money and power, not "liberal socialists". Take Walmart for example, how much of the items there do you think are made in western countries? No many. But talk about the _successes_ of companies like Walmart and people quickly forget what that does to the national economy and employment. In the shimmer of money ideals fade.

Again, who had and have the power to invest, give credit and outsource jobs? Socialist liberals? Really?

[orang37]

If the government tries to do something about it then it will have the opposite effect. Markets cannot be fixed, they need to work themselves thru. The baht strength is a direct correlation to the US stock market rise. check out your S&P 500 charts vs the baht and you will see this. When the stock market corrects later this year the baht will go back over 30/USD. Take a look at the 2008 financial crisis and you saw 36/USD

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun Nana Cowboy,

Yes, but from a few correlations, one cannot infer causal linkage.

Just as, perhaps, one could not infer, from the number of human beings who appear to be women in Soi Nana (I'll leave that research for you, since you seem advertise expertise in that arena) an accurate estimate of relative frequency of (biological) gender, one cannot infer, I believe, from what little we know of how the Central Bank here is manipulating the Baht, and what little we know of how much of the entire economy here is "off the books," to what extent the Baht can be examined outside the context of a pan-Asian strengthening of currencies against the dollar and pound.

In the great economic "Black Swan" event of 1997, when the Baht went to 53 to the dollar, at one point: the origin, the "flash-point," of that cataclysm, was: Thailand, which was forced to float the baht against the "dollar-peg" (Thailand being, effectively, already bankrupt due to the extent of foreign debt).

Of much more interest to me is the fact that Thailand is losing market-share as (historically) the number one exporter in the world of jasmine rice, Khao Hom Mali, losing it to Vietnam, and India, among others. That very important economic input of foreign exchange, if severely reduced, I believe, over the next few years, could have very serious long-term effects on the Baht. There's an interesting article on that today, in the English language Thai newspaper we cannot mention here: search for: "Shippers: Rice exports to sink deeper."

~o:37;

[brunowrs]

I don't think you guys should be concerned about the fact THB that is getting stronger but the GBP that is getting weaker instead. If the Pound gets weaker, that means all the other currencies will get stronger, not only the Thai Baht. You guys are having a wrong perspective of this situation... Even Brazil, that now has the 6th strongest economy in the world (Brazil's economy is stronger and firmer the British economy). Brazil is only 500 years old and is already better than so many European countries... N. America and Europe both falling a part therefore they are not the attention of the world anymore, guys. Now it's China, Russia and Brazil's time to shine.

For the mate that said "Every dog has its days" well, I don't believe it will last for days, but for ages. Once upon the time, N. America and Europe were both rich and powerful. Now the things are different.. and for their people too.

[hopdafru]

Buy a little gold every month

So where and how do you suggest we buy it ? I really am interested in this suggestion.

There are brokerage firms in Thailand that allow you to buy gold at spot prices in the commodities exchanges. They will even house the gold for you so you dont have the risk of it being stolen, lost etc....

555! there's a business idea: selling gold one doesn't have - after all banks have gotten really rich selling money they didn't have.

Special offer to TV members: buy gold from the comfort of your couch: I will store it for you for a small fee as to avoid theft, loss etc. don't worry, it's safe with me.

And come the day you want to sell it I will tell you to hold on to it as it's value will rise again in just a few months, you'd be a looser to sell now. I'll even lend you money if you need some, well worth it for sure!

And don't worry, we are AIG insured, you are protected... 555!

couldn't resist

[HardenedSoul]

Buy a little gold every month

So where and how do you suggest we buy it ? I really am interested in this suggestion.

was curious too from another thread what one would do with gold bars and such - one cannot eat gold can they? - and was wondering about 'cutting bars into pieces', the following concept of breakable gold bars was mentioned:

https://www.valcambi...com/Charts.aspx

anyways, although no expert (note to hardenedsoul: I'm just a curious layman re. economy etc.) I don't see how carrying a bunch of gold under the mattress will help me if currencies start failing; maybe I'm better off raising chicken, ducks & growing food which I could then exchange for gold ( or whatever new temporary new 'currency') for a fraction of the 'cost' it would be now, no?

As for my relatively short life experience - i'm only about forty - I've noticed that these 'shit hitting the fan' scenarios tend to happen in slow motion (unfortunately so as our life spans are relatively short!)

I don't buy this whole 'buy gold now or you will be doomed' kind of thing, I don't see how it would work in practical terms - how was gold used when USSR collapsed or during Asian and Argentinian currency crisis?

Given a doomsday scenario I feel much more comfortable with stuff people would really need to survive such as food or gas. Just my opinion and open to sound information / advice about why I should buy gold now and how to go about it.

The way I go about the economy these days is I try to inform myself as much as possible, I try not to get carried over by fear and carry 3 currencies in several banks / countries and use them to my advantage. Should anything go very wrong somewhere, some trend should surface and I'll take action from there.

Sokh Dee

Ok, let's see. Let's imagine that the shit does indeed hit the fan.

Is today's society more likely to exchange gold coins for goods and services or return to barter-based transactions with livestock and vegetables being the currency of the day?

Personally, I don't think that paper money will become worthless in the short to medium term but I do believe that all of them will continue to weaken against gold.

The Asian financial crisis, while pretty darned serious, didn't occur at a time when the global financial system was in the parlous state it's in now. It was possible for the system to cope but try it now and see what happens. No one - America, Europe, Britain can ever hope to repay their debts unless they inflate their way out. Yes, I know that, looking at official inflation numbers, it looks like all the QE, all the bailouts, all the financial engineering has worked reasonably well but the man in the street with fuel bills, petrol bills, food bills and a deposit savings account will say otherwise . . . and not in a polite way.

I think it's best to trust what you can see and hear in the real world and ignore the bullshit in the media.

All those jokers who said gold was topping out at $1,000 are looking pretty stupid right now.

If you want proof of gold's usefulness, just look at what happened in Iceland at the start of the crisis; any Icelander who owned gold at that time was sitting very pretty indeed.

[jayceenik]

http://www.goldcore.com/goldcore_blog/swiss-banks-offer-allocated-accounts-move-allocated-internationally

Reuters reports that “huge quantities” of silver bullion coins were being bought by investors, including entire monster boxes full with 500 1 oz bullion coins sealed by the US Mint.

Swiss banks, UBS and Credit Suisse, have moved to offer allocated gold and silver accounts to their clients – including high net worth individuals, hedge funds, other banks and institutions.

Gold in U.S. Dollars, Monthly – (Bloomberg)

The move allows these entities to take direct ownership of their bullion in allocated accounts.

According to the Financial Times, the banks say that they are making the move in order to reduce exposure and risks on balance sheets and in an effort to be more transparent.

“Under more common "unallocated" gold accounts, depositors' bullion appears on the banks' balance sheets, forcing them to increase their capital reserves. Like their global peers, UBS and Credit Suisse are under pressure from regulators to reduce capital-intensive activities ahead of the introduction of new Basel III global banking rules.”

It is more likely that the banks made the move to allocated storage due to an increased preference from their investors who are weary of continuing systemic risk.

We have spoken and written about this trend for some time.

In recent months there has been a definite change by our clients and by bullion owners internationally from owning gold and silver in unallocated accounts, to owning bullion coins and bars in allocated and segregated accounts.

Investors who were unwilling before to pay annual storage fees on allocated accounts are now willing to pay the extra cost. This is due to increased awareness and concern about systemic risk and a preference for owning gold directly and eliminating counter party risk.

Indeeed, we and other bullion dealers who offer allocated storage outside the banking and financial system have seen flows out of bullion banks unallocated gold account offerings and into allocated accounts such as with the

Perth Mint and Via Mat.

[hansnl]

If the government tries to do something about it then it will have the opposite effect. Markets cannot be fixed, they need to work themselves thru. The baht strength is a direct correlation to the US stock market rise. check out your S&P 500 charts vs the baht and you will see this. When the stock market corrects later this year the baht will go back over 30/USD. Take a look at the 2008 financial crisis and you saw 36/USD

As the Baht is coupled to a mix of currencies this is not entirely true.

As it is now the fluctuation is not directly related to the stock market, thank god.

That stupidity, in my view, is a very much overrated trading in fried air.

The currency market has, thank god again, other influences beside fried air.

If the dollar will appreciate to the baht again, is just a big question seen the huge debt of the US.

[kevvy]

Aussies dont have to worry about this at this moment 32.22 baht to aussie dollar i remember when we were only getting 25 baht to the dollar .

[cdmtdm]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_Order_6102

again what about this scenario .? so if you are the lucky ones that get the physical gold ( sorry for those that purchased on a promise of delivery u were never going to get it) they slam u with this ...and they have no choice ...

[hopdafru]

http://en.wikipedia....tive_Order_6102

again what about this scenario .? so if you are the lucky ones that get the physical gold ( sorry for those that purchased on a promise of delivery u were never going to get it) they slam u with this ...and they have no choice ...

"In Australia part IV of the Banking Act 1959 allowed the Commonwealth government to seize private citizens' gold in return for paper money where the Governor-General "is satisfied that it is expedient so to do, for the protection of the currency or of the public credit of the Commonwealth.^[18]" As of January 30, 1976, this part's operation is "suspended".^[19]"

[Billy The Kid]

Remembered in 2009 November when the thai baht was 50.51 bt to an Euro. Transferred €30,000 online to scb bank in Pattaya, then in july 2010 when thai baht went to 38 to an euro, re-transferred same amount back and made €9,500 profit (€39.500 return) after only 9 months. But it is a long time since it went above the 40s.. But someday it will happen, what goes up must go down.

[cdmtdm]

http://en.wikipedia....tive_Order_6102

again what about this scenario .? so if you are the lucky ones that get the physical gold ( sorry for those that purchased on a promise of delivery u were never going to get it) they slam u with this ...and they have no choice ...

"In Australia part IV of the Banking Act 1959 allowed the Commonwealth government to seize private citizens' gold in return for paper money where the Governor-General "is satisfied that it is expedient so to do, for the protection of the currency or of the public credit of the Commonwealth.^[18]" As of January 30, 1976, this part's operation is "suspended".^[19]"

suspended !! could change back overnight ...no need for an election ..

[thailand49]

Buy a little gold every month

So where and how do you suggest we buy it ? I really am interested in this suggestion.

was curious too from another thread what one would do with gold bars and such - one cannot eat gold can they? - and was wondering about 'cutting bars into pieces', the following concept of breakable gold bars was mentioned:

https://www.valcambi...com/Charts.aspx

anyways, although no expert (note to hardenedsoul: I'm just a curious layman re. economy etc.) I don't see how carrying a bunch of gold under the mattress will help me if currencies start failing; maybe I'm better off raising chicken, ducks & growing food which I could then exchange for gold ( or whatever new temporary new 'currency') for a fraction of the 'cost' it would be now, no?

As for my relatively short life experience - i'm only about forty - I've noticed that these 'shit hitting the fan' scenarios tend to happen in slow motion (unfortunately so as our life spans are relatively short!)

I don't buy this whole 'buy gold now or you will be doomed' kind of thing, I don't see how it would work in practical terms - how was gold used when USSR collapsed or during Asian and Argentinian currency crisis?

Given a doomsday scenario I feel much more comfortable with stuff people would really need to survive such as food or gas. Just my opinion and open to sound information / advice about why I should buy gold now and how to go about it.

The way I go about the economy these days is I try to inform myself as much as possible, I try not to get carried over by fear and carry 3 currencies in several banks / countries and use them to my advantage. Should anything go very wrong somewhere, some trend should surface and I'll take action from there.

Sokh Dee

Ok, let's see. Let's imagine that the shit does indeed hit the fan.

Is today's society more likely to exchange gold coins for goods and services or return to barter-based transactions with livestock and vegetables being the currency of the day?

Personally, I don't think that paper money will become worthless in the short to medium term but I do believe that all of them will continue to weaken against gold.

The Asian financial crisis, while pretty darned serious, didn't occur at a time when the global financial system was in the parlous state it's in now. It was possible for the system to cope but try it now and see what happens. No one - America, Europe, Britain can ever hope to repay their debts unless they inflate their way out. Yes, I know that, looking at official inflation numbers, it looks like all the QE, all the bailouts, all the financial engineering has worked reasonably well but the man in the street with fuel bills, petrol bills, food bills and a deposit savings account will say otherwise . . . and not in a polite way.

I think it's best to trust what you can see and hear in the real world and ignore the bullshit in the media.

All those jokers who said gold was topping out at $1,000 are looking pretty stupid right now.

If you want proof of gold's usefulness, just look at what happened in Iceland at the start of the crisis; any Icelander who owned gold at that time was sitting very pretty indeed.

I think you are right to a certain extend? Gold is important but I think I can safely say that every economic expert will tell you don't put all your eggs in one basket. That when you compare the stock market and gold.. gold looses historically.

The reason we use paper is it is just too dam_n heavy to carry gold LOL, Just ask the 49ers who panned for gold? if there are any left and we aren't talking about the S.F. 49ers?

I always think about gold and these discussion can it really happen? We are living in the 21st century and not back a century ago? To me this is in the same line as those who want to apply the Bible to today and those in America who talk about the 2nd amendment about having guns. I have tons and collect them myself.. like to shoot the off, the bigger the bigger the bigger the hole it makes the better. I get off on them! But really when I listen to these idiots about restrictions and such any person with half a brain knows we aren't living in George Washington time and the British isn't coming. And the country is going to be taken over! In the Sixty we were worried about the Russian coming to evade us built bomb shelters etc....

We need gold but really get real and get with the times?

Edited January 31, 2013 by thailand49

[hopdafru]

I'm curious how/if the recent increase in minimum wage affects the THB. FYI just found an article mentioning it (describing as well what seems to be an economy in pretty good shape):

For employees, the government, and labor unions, the hope is that in a time of economic growth (5% predicted for 2013) and low unemployment (0.6% at the end of 2012), increased income for workers will boost consumption and force productivity gains and innovation. This will then drive a more balanced, modernized, and competitive economy and help Thailand avoid the much-dreaded middle-income trap.

http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2013/01/30/thailand-adopts-nationwide-minimum-wage-policy-amid-controversy/

[Naam]

Every dog has it's day.

this Thai Baht dog has its days since 6½ years

[kennedy]

Every dog has it's day.

this Thai Baht dog has its days since 6½ years

And this old dog isn't worried.

[HardenedSoul]

I think you are right to a certain extend? Gold is important but I think I can safely say that every economic expert will tell you don't put all your eggs in one basket. That when you compare the stock market and gold.. gold looses historically.

The reason we use paper is it is just too dam_n heavy to carry gold LOL,

We need gold but really get real and get with the times?

Maybe gold does lose out to stocks historically but, in the last few years since I bought, it most certainly hasn't. "Getting with the times" hasn't worked out for a helluva lot of people in Greece, Ireland, Iceland, Portugal, Great Britain or the US. The "times" kinda got ahead of themselves. Yes gold is inconvenient to carry around but then again, maybe soon it'll be more convenient than pushing a wheelbarrow of paper money around to buy a loaf of bread.

I'm still puzzled as to why there isn't a 5 or 10K baht note.

Maybe it is difficult to see the global financial system reverting to a point where we walk around with gold sovereigns in our pockets but the fact is that an increasing number of indiciduals and even central banks are busy acquiring it in its physical form.

Frankly, I don't think anyone should pay any mind to Western naysayers because the West has no real money.

India, China and the rest of Asia is where the real, tangible wealth is now and they tend to regard gold as real money and as the best (for now) store of wealth. The advanced economies can keep their paper-based, counterparty-handicapped financial derivatives - I'll keep 40% of my pile in gold and silver thanks.

[Whidbeyboy]

A simple answer. The very liberal socialists have broken the Western economies. They simply can no longer afford to provide for people who have no desire to work. Thailand hasn't gotten to that point, YET.

It's conservatives like you that make me wonder why they claim to have the market on Christianity. The message of Jesus helping those less fortunate and the republican message of everyone for themselves, let the poor suffer, is ironic.

And why is it that when anyone gets government help they are just lazy and don't want to work? Would you put your parents in this catagory since they collect social security and are on Medicare? Both government (social) programs. And how about anyone that retired from the miltary after just 20 years collecting benefits in the way of money, free medical, and disability (some just for back pain after sitting at a desk thier career). And what about every politician who lives off tax payors money and after one or two years gets benefits for life including medical. All this is government programs paid for by tax payers. Are these all the lazy people you are talking about, or is it that you think it is all healthy black males that are sitting around collecting checks while on crack that don't want to work?

Likely the people who you think are on social care that do not want to work is very small, compared to all those friends of your and you parents.

[phantomfiddler]

I think it,s not about the Thai baht. The British pound and the U.S. dollare are doomed, and both for the same reason. How can a financial state be expected to survive when there are 5 generations of families who have never worked and have no intention of working, purely because the system is set up such that there is no need to work. The whole system is set up so that these parasites will vote for whoever will give them the most for zero input and, since there are much more poor people than rich, their votes will keep the politicians who make the promises in power. In mathematics it,s called an unstable equation, and the politicians will prosper while the country they pretend to represent goes down the tubes. Try going into any government office in Thailand and see if you can get housing or food assistance !

[TommoPhysicist]

Try going into any government office in Thailand and see if you can get housing or food assistance !

Apparently several teenagers in Nan have been successful.

[Krataiboy]

When I first came to Thailand 20 years ago the Can $ was worth 20 Baht.

5 years ago it was worth 34.

Now it is worth 30.

Notice any predictable pattern?

No, nor do I.

No one can tell you which way a currency will go against any other currency (except maybe Zimbabwe).

35 years ago gold went to $900 an ounce.

Then it dropped to $200 an ounce.

Today? $1700.

Notice a pattern?

No nor do I.

Is there any point to this post?

Yes - life is unpredictable. Don't expect otherwise.

Forecasting currency fluctuations mid or long term is indeed difficult - if not actually impossible - because there are so many unpredictable factors which can upset the fiscal apple cart. However, in the short term, approaching economic storms can be readily identified and appropriate action taken.

A case in point is the probability of a severe reduction in the purchasing power of the pound against the baht - and just about every other currency (except the monopoly money of Mr Bugame) is a case in point.

Let's look at some salient facts.

Successive Thai governments have taken a number of sensible steps to strengthen the economy and prevent a repetition of the run on the baht which brought the country to its knees in 1997. The country's exports are booming despite the relatively high baht, the balance of payments situation is healthy and foreign currency reserves are deep.

Forecasts in relation to tourism and exports remain high and international and domestic confidence in the Thai economy is reflected by the amount of inward investment by foreign companies and the pace of infrastructure, new housing and other construction development unfolding across the country.

Where I live in Cha Am, as an anecdotal example, virtually every scrap of land is being eagerly snapped up by developers. The government is earmarking huge sums to expand facilities here and in the the already much larger neighbouring city of Hua Hin an upsurge in Asian tourism resulting from the relentless economic rise of the East.

Now Britain's profile: Deep in debt (eqivalent to 900 per cent of the economy) and getting in deeper every day, with no chance of being back into the black for at least another five years - if then. Saddled with an inept government which is stifling economic growth while simultaneously alienating the European Union partners it needs most for trade and financial support. Facing growing unemployment and ever higher inflation no amount of Whitehall figure juggling can disguise from an increasingly disenchanted public.

The latest (January) currency forecast from HSBC, one of the world's biggest banks, states bluntly that the UK's "fiscal credibility is under threat" and "a sovereign downgrade looms". Now that America has stepped back from its fiscal cliff and Europe has diminished fears of a break-up, it declares uniquivocally, "Britain has lost the Contest of the Uglies".

All the wishful expat thinking in the world won't change the fact that the pound has been living on borrowed time for at least a year, courtesy of its ill-deserved and ludicrous triple-A rating. ( If ever there was a triumph of optimism over reality it was the illusion that HMS Britannia wasn't actually sinking - despite even the deckchairs being under water).

The truth has finally become too obvious for even the devious and thoroughly discredited ratings agencies to ignore. Britain is facing a status downgrade which will sharply raise the nation's borrowing costs and send the already unscaleable debt mountain soaring to Olympian heights. The sequel is widely predicted to be a devaluation of the pound of the kind not seen since since the suffering Seventies.

You don't have to take my word for it, or even that of the experts at HSBC, who should know what they are talking about. Plenty of other respected market watchers out there have been predicting sterling's fall from its unwarranted pedestal for months now. Earlier this month, a MoneyWeek special headlined The End of Britain warned that the entire British economy was on the verge of collapse.

If HSBC, MoneyWeek and the other usually reliable crystal gazers are right, the likelihood is that pound's recent plummet against the Thai baht is no mere hiccup, but rather the prelude to a mighty belch which will leave a lot of us expats - particularly pensioner retirees on fixed incomes - struggling to make ends meet.

Don't expect to get the bad news from the horse's mouth. George Osborne and the Governor of the Bank of England are not going to announce the devaluation of the pound in advance, for obvious reasons. They'll steal the value of our money away by stealth, closing the high street banks for a holiday or some other pretext. By the time they reopen the dastardly deed will have been done.

Is there anything one can do to protect oneself? Not much if your income is a pension or salary is paid in pounds. But it is still not too late to move any savings out of sterling and into a less vulnerable currency - Aussie dollars for instance, which are still, for the moment, holding up well against the baht - or another kind of investment entirely.

UK subjects who are resident in Thailand for tax purposes can, of course, transfer their pounds to a Thai bank and have them converted into baht, though there are limits on how much can be shipped in this way.

I am not an expert on financial matters or currency fluctuation, any more than are many of the posters to this particular forum. But the evidence for an imminent devaluation of sterling is hard to resist.

I would strongly advise anybody who feels I am pressing the alarm button unjustifiably to do their own research. Oh, please do please let me know if I am wrong. I shall be greatly relieved!

[inthepink]

What an odd rant. You ought to consider that large banks make currency predictions all the time, they change opinions very quickly too, often based on their in-house positions. I wasn't aware that sterling was on an unwarranted pedestal either. Given that it is currently trading at around 1.5830 and was at 2.11 to the dollar at one point in late 2007, I would say it fell off any perceived pedestal quite some time ago.

EDIT: As for not expecting to get "bad news from the horse's mouth" as you put it, Mervyn King has already said publicly that the recent strengthening in sterling was unwelcome. How much more of a hint do you need?

Edited January 31, 2013 by inthepink

[BahBahBoBo]

Hahahaha

This is nothing more than inevitable changes that in fact are long overdue.

You can't seriously look at the hard working people in developing countries and believe they must work for peanuts in comparrison to their wester counterparts FOREVER?

The western economies are just on a long-overdue sink. They are trying to make up for this with new expensive income-generating wars.

Really, no matter what happens, thing do need to come to more of a balance. Its inevitable.

Thailand is a great country with great people and I think they will do ok in the long run.

Who knows?

Ten years from now affluent Thai men could be flocking to the go-go bars in an economically devestated U.S.A. shagging all the young college age american girls for two dollars a pop who work hard to buy new tired and gas for their american boyfriends cars, who by the way can't get any work or don't want to... and sit around all day playing guitars and with their hair.

The Thai men will love their little American playthings who will 'love them long time' for two bucks and who introduce their American layabout boyfriends as their 'Brother' or 'Cousin'.

Of course the girls will also fleece them for a few bucks for their 'sick confederate grandmother'.

When the Thai men come out of the American go-go bars after a good time they will be hungry and can feast at all the little 50 cent hotdog stands run my middle aged moms and pops who can make a little spare change as they watch America's daughters all walking around bow-legged from the 2 dollar poundings they are getting from all the Asian tourists.

hahahaha

Couldn't resist! Have a nice day!

[Billmont]

When I first came to Thailand 20 years ago the Can $ was worth 20 Baht.

5 years ago it was worth 34.

Now it is worth 30.

Notice any predictable pattern?

No, nor do I.

No one can tell you which way a currency will go against any other currency (except maybe Zimbabwe).

35 years ago gold went to $900 an ounce.

Then it dropped to $200 an ounce.

Today? $1700.

Notice a pattern?

No nor do I.

Is there any point to this post?

Yes - life is unpredictable. Don't expect otherwise.

Yes, you are correct and "Whores Drawers" springs to mind!

[TommoPhysicist]

I would strongly advise anybody who feels I am pressing the alarm button unjustifiably to do their own research. Oh, please do please let me know if I am wrong. I shall be greatly relieved!

I feel you are wrong, and Thailand is on the brink of disaster.

Unfortunately forum rules prevent me from explaining why I think this.

[hopdafru]

I would strongly advise anybody who feels I am pressing the alarm button unjustifiably to do their own research. Oh, please do please let me know if I am wrong. I shall be greatly relieved!

I feel you are wrong, and Thailand is on the brink of disaster.

Unfortunately forum rules prevent me from explaining why I think this.

huh?

please do explain. I'm sure it's possible within TV rules, s'il vous plait

[belg]

if you lost 20% of your home country savings, but living here, why not transfer it here and get 3% ... i know i also transfert toooo late and lost literally millions in exchange compared when the euro was 50 - 51

[DonaldBattles]

For a small group of islands with a small population that you call the UK you should not worry about the booming economy in the east. More taxes and liberal immigration are in storr for your small island country.

[chiang mai]

I would strongly advise anybody who feels I am pressing the alarm button unjustifiably to do their own research. Oh, please do please let me know if I am wrong. I shall be greatly relieved!

I feel you are wrong, and Thailand is on the brink of disaster.

Unfortunately forum rules prevent me from explaining why I think this.

huh?

please do explain. I'm sure it's possible within TV rules, s'il vous plait

Read up on the laws here regarding Les Majeste.