Record Thai Household Debt Crimps Rate-Cut Room: Southeast Asia

Din Ruenmeesang spends about half his monthly income making minimum payments on his seven credit cards and multiple bank loans. That isn’t stopping the 33-year-old from borrowing again to buy a new car next year.

Spenders like Din are making it hard for Thailand’s central bank to cut interest rates even as Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy struggles with weakening growth. Thai household debt has more than tripled in a decade to a record high 83.5 percent of gross domestic product, and lower borrowing costs may exacerbate that.