Curious on what standard is the Baht backed on?

[chiang mai]

Hope I don't get my arse handed to me but think Thai baht based on USD. It's the international currency standard, petrol too. BRICS counties are trying to wrestle this standard away and beginning yo trade in other currencies. Note: USD is pure fiat. It has no associated commodity to back it. My fear is US unending pumping of USD will tragically hurt Thailand as well as the more money in circulation the less value it has. The Creature From Jekyll Island is a great book for grasping the total absurdity of the modern banking cartel.

I think that probably the OP didn't phrase the question quite right.

As readily pointed out, the Baht is not really backed by anything. The value of the Baht is calculated against a basket of currencies consisting, I believe, of the USD, Euro and GBP Sterling. Naam will soon correct me if I'm wrong.

For further info, as always, the OP can consult Dr. Google.

I think what you meant to say is that the value of THB is maintained against a basket of regional currencies, it's membership in ASEAN being of importance.

[chiang mai]

Naam is the only one I would take any notice of, he's successful, he's got a great house, great cars, and I am his adopted son.

Great cars:

Vroom, vroom!

[Noi657]

Once Scotland has voted to stay part of the UK can the rest of us please get the vote to get them out!

[homeownership]

just who in their right mind would invest in pounds! after scotland succeeds and switches to euro, pound is gonna lose just how much of its value exactly? good riddance.

Your lack of knowledge is astounding !

Scotland cannot switch to the Euro. Because only countries in the European Union can use the Euro as their currency.

If Scotland becomes and independent nation and leaves the United Kingdom, then it is also leaving the EU as Scotland the new nation state will not automatically become a member of the European Community, it will have to Apply to Join in its own right.

Scotland cannot continue to use the Pound and the Pound is the currency of the United Kingdom which it is no longer part of. The taxpayers of the United Kingdom underwrite the value of the Pound, which Scotland would have just left.

Their third option, which they are not fond of is this:

Scotland issues its own currency, backed by Taxpayers in Scotland. Unfortunately for Scotland, they cannot make good on their promises made for a new Scottish future, if they have issue a currency.

In otherwords, they want to make a cake, but don't want to pay for the ingredients.

Maybe you should be informed that Scotland has it's own currency, the Scottish pound, for a looooong time already.

Wrong again Son. The Scottish Pounds is actually Pound Sterling, it is underwritten by taxpayers in all four parts of the UK, plus dependancies. It is merely branded Scottish to retain the identity of the countries where it is used. The currency is the same, only the notes are different. If Scotland become independent then the Scottish Pound Sterling, will cease to be legal currency.

[homeownership]

Once Scotland has voted to stay part of the UK can the rest of us please get the vote to get them out!

I think thats what they mean by Devolution Max !!!

This is the proposal to a No vote. (Vote yes to be an independent country or vote no to remain in the UK).

[Thai at Heart]

Currencies are not backed by any goods.

Correct, they are valued by debt.

[Thai at Heart]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

[thailiketoo]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

Where do I find those two numbers?

[chiang mai]

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/government-debt-to-gdp

and here:

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/external-debt

Edited May 13, 2014 by chiang mai

[thailiketoo]

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/government-debt-to-gdp

and here:

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/external-debt

So following the two posts above why is there no correlation between those numbers and the value of the Baht?

[chiang mai]

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/government-debt-to-gdp

and here:

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/thailand/external-debt

So following the two posts above why is there no correlation between those numbers and the value of the Baht?

I wasn't supporting the earlier posters theory, I was merely supplying the numbers you were looking for.

But just to add: what you can't see in those numbers is the extent that BOT may have intervened in the market, whilst they haven't done so for quite a few months, they were quite actively trying to weaken THB when it was sub 50 per Pound.

But to get back to the question of what is THB based on: I don't believe there is any one single factor, instead it's value is determined by a number of factors including GDP, borrowings, economic risk factors (such as capital outflows resulting from tapering) and political stability, the two latter points are the ones that have been in play recently whislt the last one continues to impact value today.

Edited May 13, 2014 by chiang mai

[chiang mai]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

So the opposite of Pound Sterling and USD then.

[atyclb]

Barfine index.

Are you saying it is not backed by ping pong balls?

[Payboy]

Barfine index.

Are you saying it is not backed by ping pong balls?

I refuse to answer on the grounds that any further revelation may incriminate me.

[Greg Nixon]

It is a complex set of conditions based on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Here is a link which can help explain.

https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/exrp/differ/differ.htm

Like any commodity the thai Baht is worth what the market will pay for it. It does not always seem to make sense. Foe example during the political turmoil and rumours of rice corruption the THB actually rose against the Canadian dollar.

If the link does not work google the difference between IMF and World Bank. The IMF holds a basket of currencies and gold. There are organisations world wide that buy and sell currencies thus setting the rate.

[Thai at Heart]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

Where do I find those two numbers?

Last I read, govt debt is about 50% of GDP and forex was about 180bn USD.

Far better as ratios and absolute figures than most western countries. Unless they political.situation gets utterly nuts ุ the baht is fine.

[Thai at Heart]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

So the opposite of Pound Sterling and USD then.

Why do you say that? Don't forget the USD and gbp have the advantage of being reserve currencies. The baht does not.

[thailiketoo]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

So the opposite of Pound Sterling and USD then.

Why do you say that? Don't forget the USD and gbp have the advantage of being reserve currencies. The baht does not.

Thai baht is the unofficial reserve currency of Laos, Cambodia and Burma I believe.

[chiang mai]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

So the opposite of Pound Sterling and USD then.

Why do you say that? Don't forget the USD and gbp have the advantage of being reserve currencies. The baht does not.

It strikes me that if the strength of GBP were determined by UK debt levels and the ability of the UK to fund that debt, logically GBP would be weak at present, since the debt and deficit are at record levels and the economic recovery is being led almost exclusively by consumer spending. It's for that reason and others that I think the value of any currency is determined by multiple factors rather than just debt and repayment ability. Actaully what it really comes down to is confidence levels in a particluar economy, one that is growing will incur some inflation and interest rates will be increased accordingly, that makes for a strong and attractive currency.

[Naam]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

So the opposite of Pound Sterling and USD then.

Why do you say that? Don't forget the USD and gbp have the advantage of being reserve currencies. The baht does not.

Sterling lost its reserve currency status 70 years ago when "Bretton Woods" was created.

[Naam]

Nothing backs the Baht. It is 100% fiat. Same thing with the U.S. Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen, Yuan, Ruble, etc...........................

We are living in the waning moments of the grand Central Banking experiment that is about to go BOOM, and then they will try and implement their world currency. It is going to get very interesting very soon!

It is backed or not according to the amount of Thai baht debt and thailands ability to fund this debt.

how does a country "fund" its debt?

[noodle]

 

Here comes the Ron Paul crowd with their economic manifesto written in finger paint....

"it's backed by thin air!"

Pejorative? "...backed by thin air;" Don't know who you've quoted above.

Money in US not "printed out of thin air"; that's fantasy. It's promissory debt of the American people=coercion. Ron Paul would have been quite perilous for the US and surely it's allies but he was right about one thing, the Fed should have at least one audit in 100years. US Fed is quite relevant as it influences and strong arms central banks throughout the world. They are the same sheet of music conductor. I think this topic interesting, even though I was mistaken about the only reason for the post- what pegs Thai Baht. Thanks for telling me.

'....promissory debt of the American people..'

Not these days. It is just 'legal tender' backed by zilch as are all fiat monies.

[arjunadawn]

 

Here comes the Ron Paul crowd with their economic manifesto written in finger paint....

"it's backed by thin air!"

Pejorative? "...backed by thin air;" Don't know who you've quoted above.

Money in US not "printed out of thin air"; that's fantasy. It's promissory debt of the American people=coercion. Ron Paul would have been quite perilous for the US and surely it's allies but he was right about one thing, the Fed should have at least one audit in 100years. US Fed is quite relevant as it influences and strong arms central banks throughout the world. They are the same sheet of music conductor. I think this topic interesting, even though I was mistaken about the only reason for the post- what pegs Thai Baht. Thanks for telling me.

'....promissory debt of the American people..'

Not these days. It is just 'legal tender' backed by zilch as are all fiat monies.

Yes, it is fiat. I tried that explanation somewhere on this forum and that's where I believe I got the Ron Paul assault. Folks don't accept that people can reach conclusions without opinion leaders. After the federal reserve act and later the gold standard changes around 100years ago, I believe, when money in us taken of silver and gold standard, and fractional lending approved, money became legal tender simply by coercion- the government declares it has value therefore you must use it or be subjected to law=coercion. There is reason many of Americas framers found a central bank repugnant and asserted the greatest lose of freedoms would ensue from a central bank, eating out our substance.

I didn't want to dutifully respond to the Ron Paul assertion by another member because it was not valid; it was a pejorative to impugn me. But the fact remains, the Federal Reserve is not federal at all. It's a private banking cartel run by a small clique of families and they instigate and push international policies that have all economies functioning off a debt based model. It is unquestionably the most artificial thing ever, and it enslaves billions- I assert! There's simply no intrinsic value to us paper and the government that declares it valid is increasingly suspect of legitimacy.

Edited May 13, 2014 by arjunadawn

[thailiketoo]

Yes, it is fiat. I tried that explanation somewhere on this forum and that's where I believe I got the Ron Paul assault. Folks don't accept that people can reach conclusions without opinion leaders. After the federal reserve act and later the gold standard changes around 100years ago, I believe, when money in us taken of silver and gold standard, and fractional lending approved, money became legal tender simply by coercion- the government declares it has value therefore you must use it or be subjected to law=coercion. There is reason many of Americas framers found a central bank repugnant and asserted the greatest lose of freedoms would ensue from a central bank, eating out our substance.

I didn't want to dutifully respond to the Ron Paul assertion by another member because it was not valid; it was a pejorative to impugn me. But the fact remains, the Federal Reserve is not federal at all. It's a private banking cartel run by a small clique of families and they instigate and push international policies that have all economies functioning off a debt based model. It is unquestionably the most artificial thing ever, and it enslaves billions- I assert! There's simply no intrinsic value to us paper and the government that declares it valid is increasingly suspect of legitimacy.

Nonsense. Go to a gold store and take all of your dollars and change them into gold. No problem. Takes a couple of minutes. So is the dollar worth gold? Sure you can exchange all the dollars you have for gold in a minute. Same with baht. You want a small gold bar? No problem give the dealer 20,000 baht and he gives you a small gold bar.

[arjunadawn]

Yes, it is fiat. I tried that explanation somewhere on this forum and that's where I believe I got the Ron Paul assault. Folks don't accept that people can reach conclusions without opinion leaders. After the federal reserve act and later the gold standard changes around 100years ago, I believe, when money in us taken of silver and gold standard, and fractional lending approved, money became legal tender simply by coercion- the government declares it has value therefore you must use it or be subjected to law=coercion. There is reason many of Americas framers found a central bank repugnant and asserted the greatest lose of freedoms would ensue from a central bank, eating out our substance.

I didn't want to dutifully respond to the Ron Paul assertion by another member because it was not valid; it was a pejorative to impugn me. But the fact remains, the Federal Reserve is not federal at all. It's a private banking cartel run by a small clique of families and they instigate and push international policies that have all economies functioning off a debt based model. It is unquestionably the most artificial thing ever, and it enslaves billions- I assert! There's simply no intrinsic value to us paper and the government that declares it valid is increasingly suspect of legitimacy.

Nonsense. Go to a gold store and take all of your dollars and change them into gold. No problem. Takes a couple of minutes. So is the dollar worth gold? Sure you can exchange all the dollars you have for gold in a minute. Same with baht. You want a small gold bar? No problem give the dealer 20,000 baht and he gives you a small gold bar.

"Nonsense?" Because you can buy gold with paper money does not make it intrinsically redeemable in precious metal. The concept was that people didn't want to walk around with large amounts of gold in their pocket, or travel the same. With a valid note that the money was deposited in London, they could tender the note in Paris and receive the gold in return- thus modern banking. But the gold sat there and hardly earned the bankers the interest they needed. Since everyone never came at same time, they began loaning money at interest. They still needed more, And thus was born fractional lending- for every dollar on deposit they could loan out 10. Decoupling the paper currency from the metal enabled them to stretch it. It's hardly true that because you can buy gold with paper money that paper money is redeemable in gold.

Also, the amount of gold you could buy from a dealer will vary widely because the value of the currency is not pegged to precious metal, for which finite amounts give it the credibility to serve this purpose.

Edited May 13, 2014 by arjunadawn

[thailiketoo]

Yes, it is fiat. I tried that explanation somewhere on this forum and that's where I believe I got the Ron Paul assault. Folks don't accept that people can reach conclusions without opinion leaders. After the federal reserve act and later the gold standard changes around 100years ago, I believe, when money in us taken of silver and gold standard, and fractional lending approved, money became legal tender simply by coercion- the government declares it has value therefore you must use it or be subjected to law=coercion. There is reason many of Americas framers found a central bank repugnant and asserted the greatest lose of freedoms would ensue from a central bank, eating out our substance.

I didn't want to dutifully respond to the Ron Paul assertion by another member because it was not valid; it was a pejorative to impugn me. But the fact remains, the Federal Reserve is not federal at all. It's a private banking cartel run by a small clique of families and they instigate and push international policies that have all economies functioning off a debt based model. It is unquestionably the most artificial thing ever, and it enslaves billions- I assert! There's simply no intrinsic value to us paper and the government that declares it valid is increasingly suspect of legitimacy.

Nonsense. Go to a gold store and take all of your dollars and change them into gold. No problem. Takes a couple of minutes. So is the dollar worth gold? Sure you can exchange all the dollars you have for gold in a minute. Same with baht. You want a small gold bar? No problem give the dealer 20,000 baht and he gives you a small gold bar.

"Nonsense?" Because you can buy gold with paper money does not make it intrinsically redeemable in precious metal. The concept was that people didn't want to walk around with large amounts of gold in their pocket, or travel the same. With a valid note that the money was deposited in London, they could tender the note in Paris and receive the gold in return- thus modern banking. But the gold sat there and hardly earned the bankers the interest they needed. Since everyone never came at same time, they began loaning money at interest. They still needed more, And thus was born fractional lending- for every dollar on deposit they could loan out 10. Decoupling the paper currency from the metal enabled them to stretch it. It's hardly true that because you can buy gold with paper money that paper money is redeemable in gold.

Also, the amount of gold you could buy from a dealer will vary widely because the value of the currency is not pegged to precious metal, for which finite amounts give it the credibility to serve this purpose.

The price of gold bars are the same everywhere and pegged to the dollar or any other currency you want to buy at that time of sale. I can buy gold in Thailand with dollars or baht or many other currencies no problem. All currencies are pegged to the price of gold at the time of the quote.

You don't want to carry gold around? No problem. Gold exchange-traded products are exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds (CEFs) and exchange-traded notes (ETNs) that aim to track the price of gold. Gold exchange-traded products are traded on the major stock exchanges including Zurich, Mumbai, London, Paris and New York. As of 25 June 2010, physically backed funds held 2,062.6 tonnes of vaulted gold in total for private and institutional investors.

[arjunadawn]

Yes, it is fiat. I tried that explanation somewhere on this forum and that's where I believe I got the Ron Paul assault. Folks don't accept that people can reach conclusions without opinion leaders. After the federal reserve act and later the gold standard changes around 100years ago, I believe, when money in us taken of silver and gold standard, and fractional lending approved, money became legal tender simply by coercion- the government declares it has value therefore you must use it or be subjected to law=coercion. There is reason many of Americas framers found a central bank repugnant and asserted the greatest lose of freedoms would ensue from a central bank, eating out our substance.

I didn't want to dutifully respond to the Ron Paul assertion by another member because it was not valid; it was a pejorative to impugn me. But the fact remains, the Federal Reserve is not federal at all. It's a private banking cartel run by a small clique of families and they instigate and push international policies that have all economies functioning off a debt based model. It is unquestionably the most artificial thing ever, and it enslaves billions- I assert! There's simply no intrinsic value to us paper and the government that declares it valid is increasingly suspect of legitimacy.

Nonsense. Go to a gold store and take all of your dollars and change them into gold. No problem. Takes a couple of minutes. So is the dollar worth gold? Sure you can exchange all the dollars you have for gold in a minute. Same with baht. You want a small gold bar? No problem give the dealer 20,000 baht and he gives you a small gold bar.

"Nonsense?" Because you can buy gold with paper money does not make it intrinsically redeemable in precious metal. The concept was that people didn't want to walk around with large amounts of gold in their pocket, or travel the same. With a valid note that the money was deposited in London, they could tender the note in Paris and receive the gold in return- thus modern banking. But the gold sat there and hardly earned the bankers the interest they needed. Since everyone never came at same time, they began loaning money at interest. They still needed more, And thus was born fractional lending- for every dollar on deposit they could loan out 10. Decoupling the paper currency from the metal enabled them to stretch it. It's hardly true that because you can buy gold with paper money that paper money is redeemable in gold.

Also, the amount of gold you could buy from a dealer will vary widely because the value of the currency is not pegged to precious metal, for which finite amounts give it the credibility to serve this purpose.

The price of gold bars are the same everywhere and pegged to the dollar or any other currency you want to buy at that time of sale. I can buy gold in Thailand with dollars or baht or many other currencies no problem. All currencies are pegged to the price of gold at the time of the quote.

You don't want to carry gold around? No problem. Gold exchange-traded products are exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds (CEFs) and exchange-traded notes (ETNs) that aim to track the price of gold. Gold exchange-traded products are traded on the major stock exchanges including Zurich, Mumbai, London, Paris and New York. As of 25 June 2010, physically backed funds held 2,062.6 tonnes of vaulted gold in total for private and institutional investors.

It's hard to argue with your reasoning, and yet your still mistaken. Though these things can be done, yes, modern currencies not intrinsically tied a precious metal have a volatile element. If I cannot effectively assert my point then I'll stop trying. Your not incorrect- yet you are. Perhaps someone smarter on this issue can explain it.

A precious metals standard reduces the inflationary, value stealing nature that fiat money can cause. When tied to a finite metal the circulating notes have real value, not coercive and inflationary, thus reflecting correctly a host of economic indicators. Now it's all just voodoo smoke and mirrors. Again, I appreciate your point, and see it, but further away and more deeply, fiat currency robs buying power.

[thailiketoo]

If you outlaw the purchase of gold.

[Naam]

It's hard to argue with your reasoning, and yet your still mistaken. Though these things can be done, yes, modern currencies not intrinsically tied a precious metal have a volatile element. If I cannot effectively assert my point then I'll stop trying. Your not incorrect- yet you are. Perhaps someone smarter on this issue can explain it.

A precious metals standard reduces the inflationary, value stealing nature that fiat money can cause. When tied to a finite metal the circulating notes have real value, not coercive and inflationary, thus reflecting correctly a host of economic indicators. Now it's all just voodoo smoke and mirrors. Again, I appreciate your point, and see it, but further away and more deeply, fiat currency robs buying power.

some of your points are valid. i also agree calling the prevailing situation "voodoo" et al. however, the switch to a precious metals standard belongs to the category "beam me up Scotty!" it's just not feasible.

[arjunadawn]

It's hard to argue with your reasoning, and yet your still mistaken. Though these things can be done, yes, modern currencies not intrinsically tied a precious metal have a volatile element. If I cannot effectively assert my point then I'll stop trying. Your not incorrect- yet you are. Perhaps someone smarter on this issue can explain it.

A precious metals standard reduces the inflationary, value stealing nature that fiat money can cause. When tied to a finite metal the circulating notes have real value, not coercive and inflationary, thus reflecting correctly a host of economic indicators. Now it's all just voodoo smoke and mirrors. Again, I appreciate your point, and see it, but further away and more deeply, fiat currency robs buying power.

some of your points are valid. i also agree calling the prevailing situation "voodoo" et al. however, the switch to a precious metals standard belongs to the category "beam me up Scotty!" it's just not feasible.

Yes, this might be the point where my knowledge fails and I am aping other's reasoning. I can see clear to understanding what we used to have as monetary policy, how it worked, and why the banking cartel switched to a system wholly more susceptible to manipulation, but then if I offer that returning to the past is the correct "fix" for the now... well, I do not necessarily make sense. I think they call that "appeal to antiquity." It doesn't mean it could work now, just coz it was the way things once were. I know. I just see whats broken- and it is!- more than I've necessarily the guide to fix it. I think people look far wiser when they can observe a problem and have a solution; but I do not have a solution. I just don't know. However, the observation remains valid.