Thailand’s gold market is experiencing explosive growth, but this surge is having unintended consequences on the country’s economy. The gold market is strengthening the Thai currency, making the country more expensive for visitors and weakening trade competitiveness.
Key Points
The growth in gold trading is linked to global investors rushing into gold, with Thailand seeing a surge in both consumer and institutional gold trading.
Authorities are raising alarms over grey money, money laundering, and illegal financial flows moving through gold trading channels and digital gold platforms.
The Bank of Thailand and government regulators are taking steps to address the risks to the economy, tourism, and exporters.
Thailand has long held a deep cultural reverence for gold, viewing it as a symbol of prosperity, status, and spiritual significance. This affinity is evident in everyday life, from ornate temple decorations and traditional jewelry to its use in ceremonies and even as employee bonuses in the form of gold necklaces. Unlike in many Western cultures where gold is primarily an investment asset, Thais often purchase it for personal fulfillment, regardless of market fluctuations. In recent years, however, this “addiction” has evolved into a speculative frenzy, fueled by soaring global gold prices and easy access to online trading platforms. As of January 2026, this obsession is exerting significant pressure on the Thai economy, particularly through its influence on the currency and key sectors.
Locally, gold trading has exploded, with over 90% of gold bar transactions now for investment or speculation rather than jewelry. Thailand ranked 7th globally for over-the-counter gold purchases in 2024, acquiring 39.8 tonnes—a 17% increase from the prior year. Gold shops, especially in Bangkok’s Chinatown (Yaowarat), buzz with activity, and digital apps have made trading accessible to retail investors. This has led to gold accounting for up to 35% of foreign exchange transactions. On volatile days, gold shops handle 20.5% of forex volume, up from 8.9% a decade ago.
Impact on the Thai Baht and Broader Economy
The gold boom has inadvertently strengthened the Thai baht (THB), pushing it to multi-year highs. As exporters sell gold abroad for US dollars and convert earnings back to THB, it increases demand for the local currency. By late 2025, the baht hit a four-year high, and as of January 2026, it has appreciated 8% against the USD over the past year, trading below 31 THB per USD. This strength stems from a weaker USD, Thailand’s large current account surplus, and speculative inflows tied to gold.
While a strong currency might seem beneficial, it harms Thailand’s export-dependent economy. As a small, open economy reliant on net exports, every 1 THB appreciation against the USD shaves 0.1-0.2 percentage points off GDP growth. Projected 2026 GDP growth is around 2%, but the strong baht erodes competitiveness. Key sectors affected include:
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Exports: Gold exports surged 434.1% year-on-year in July 2024, boosting overall exports by 15.2% (11% excluding gold). However, a stronger baht makes Thai goods pricier abroad, with exporters preferring a rate of 33 THB per USD.
Tourism: Accounting for about 20% of GDP, tourism suffers as Thailand becomes more expensive for international visitors. This reduces foreign spending and visitor numbers, exacerbating post-pandemic recovery challenges.
Additionally, speculative trading has led to consumer losses during price corrections, tying up capital amid inflation and reducing overall spending. The baht’s volatility has deviated from regional peers due to high gold volumes.
Concerns Over Illicit Activities
The gold trade’s opacity has raised alarms about “grey money”—funds from transnational crimes like scams, drug trafficking, and money laundering. Bangkok serves as a banking hub for the Mekong region, with an estimated 1 trillion THB (~$32 billion USD) laundered annually through gold channels. Sources include scam centers in Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos, with billions potentially invested in gold. Up to 200 billion THB in grey money may have influenced the February 2026 election through vote-buying. Fraud incidents, such as a 2024 scam affecting 1,000 people, underscore vulnerabilities.
Government and Regulatory Responses
To mitigate these impacts, authorities are implementing curbs. The Bank of Thailand (BoT) unveiled new rules for online baht-denominated gold trading on January 29, 2026, capping transactions at 50 million THB per user per day, effective March 2026. Other measures include:
A potential business tax on online gold transactions.
Trading limits on bullion and mandatory reporting for large traders (≥10 billion THB annually over 5 years).
Lowered reporting thresholds for gold bar purchases (from 2 million THB) to detect suspicious activities.
A data bureau to monitor transactions across gold, digital assets, and e-wallets, with 3-year record-keeping requirements.
Prime Minister Anuin Chanwawut has prioritized tightening regulations to combat illegal flows, though the focus is more on transparency than directly weakening the baht. BoT interventions in forex markets have been limited, prompting calls for punitive taxes and greater scrutiny. These steps aim to balance gold’s cultural role with economic stability, but their effectiveness remains to be seen amid ongoing global price pressures.
Disney’s long-running leadership drama is heating up again as activist investor Nelson Peltz accuses outgoing CEO Bob Iger of shaping the company’s succession plan to keep control behind the scenes.
The clash centers on Iger’s choice of theme parks chief Josh D’Amaro as his successor, a move Peltz claims is designed to justify Iger’s continued influence at the company.
In comments to The Wall Street Journal, Peltz said Iger favored D’Amaro over entertainment executive Dana Walden so he could stay involved after stepping down.
“Iger needs a reason to stay on,” Peltz said, arguing that choosing a parks executive over a Hollywood veteran creates space for Iger to remain a guiding force.
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D’Amaro, 54, is set to take over as CEO next month, while Iger will stay on as a Disney director and senior adviser through the end of the year.
Walden, once seen by many as the top contender for the role, was instead named president and chief creative officer, a newly created position. The decision has raised questions about whether Disney’s leadership transition will truly mark a clean break or repeat past mistakes.
Peltz pointed to Disney’s troubled last succession as a warning. In early 2020, Iger handed the CEO job to Bob Chapek, another parks executive, just weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic shook the company.
Iger remained as executive chairman, which led to overlapping authority and internal tension.
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Josh D’Amaro has been named the next CEO of #Disney, replacing longtime chief Bob Iger.
D’Amaro has served as Chairman of Disney Experiences since 2020, where he oversees parks, cruises and consumer products.
Chapek’s short tenure was marked by clashes with talent, employee unrest, political backlash in Florida, and growing losses in streaming. In November 2022, Disney’s board fired Chapek and brought Iger back as CEO.
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According to Peltz, history could repeat itself. He predicted that Iger may later claim D’Amaro lacks movie business experience and step in again to “guide” the company. Disney has not commented on Peltz’s latest remarks.
The Disney board, however, has defended the new plan. Board chairman James Gorman said the succession process was handled carefully and unanimously approved.
He noted that D’Amaro has spent years on Iger’s operating committee and has worked closely with film leaders, including helping bring major franchises like Avatar into Disney’s parks.
Peltz has been a vocal critic of Disney for years. Through his hedge fund, Trian Fund Management, he built a large stake in the company in late 2022 and launched multiple proxy fights, arguing Disney lost focus and failed at leadership planning.
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After losing a high-profile shareholder vote in April 2024, Peltz sold his entire Disney stake for a significant profit.
The Kospi index added 6.8%—a bigger snapback than last April’s rebound following President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff plans.
Leading the charge was index heavyweight Samsung Electronics, which surged more than 11%. Samsung is the world’s top memory-chip maker and a leading smartphone producer.
Tuesday marked Samsung’s biggest one-day gain since October 2008, as the global financial crisis roiled world markets.
Manika is a macroeconomist with over 20 years of experience in industries including investment management, stock broking, investment banking. She also runs the profile Long Term Tips [LTT], which focuses on the generational opportunity in the green economy. Her investing group, Green Growth Giants, takes the theme a step further from LTT with a deeper dive into opportunities presented by the segment.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, but may initiate a beneficial Long position through a purchase of the stock, or the purchase of call options or similar derivatives in MO over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
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The paper shutters Sports desk, curbs local and international coverage. (0:15) AMD plunges despite earnings. (1:02) Bitcoin extends selloff as Michael Burry warns of a crypto death spiral. (2:15)
The following is an abridged transcript:
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The Washington Post announced sweeping layoffs, cutting about one-third of its staff and gutting major parts of the newsroom as owner Jeff Bezos and his leadership team struggle for a path to profitability.
Staffers described the day as a “bloodbath,” and the moves signal a sharp narrowing of the Post’s ambitions as it looks to right the ship, with reports of steep losses — including an estimated $100M in 2024.
The paper is dismantling its Sports desk, closing the Books section, and suspending the daily Post Reports podcast. International coverage is also being scaled back, while the Metro desk — once the heartbeat of the paper in the Watergate era — is being heavily reduced.
The cuts come after weeks of internal concern, including public pleas from journalists urging Bezos to change course. And during the layoffs Zoom meeting, one reporter described the mood as “funereal.”
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Among active stocks, AMD (AMD) is plunging despite beating on both the top and bottom lines.
J.P. Morgan analyst Harlan Sur said the big question is whether AMD can show real operating leverage — and until it does, the stock may stay under pressure, especially with potential margin risk as it ramps MI450/Helios later this year.
Eli Lilly (LLY) is bouncing back after topping Street forecasts with its Q4 results and 2026 outlook. Its GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound beat revenue expectations, with both up more than 100% from a year ago.
Uber (UBER) is lower after missing Wall Street’s lofty Q4 profit expectations, as a shift toward cheaper rides and higher insurance costs weighed on results. But the company also updated its autonomous vehicle plans, aiming to operate AVs in 15 cities by year-end.
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AppLovin (APP) is sliding after AdExchanger reported on CloudX, a new AI-infused startup that could shake up the mobile advertising stack. The report said CloudX will use large language models to automate work typically done by engineers and ad ops teams.
And MGM Resorts (MGM) is rallying after BetMGM said 2025 was a record year, with net revenue reaching about $2.8B and adjusted EBITDA of $220M, driven by strong growth in both online sports betting and iGaming.
In today’s trading, bitcoin (BTC-USD) resumed its slide after a crypto selloff in the previous session that wiped out nearly $470B in market cap.
And “Big Short” investor Michael Burry warned the selloff could turn into a self-reinforcing “death spiral,” potentially causing lasting damage to companies that have spent the past year stockpiling bitcoin.
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In a Substack post seen by Bloomberg, Burry argued that bitcoin has been revealed as largely speculative — failing to establish itself as a debasement hedge like precious metals.
“Sickening scenarios have now come within reach,” he wrote. If bitcoin falls another 10%, Strategy (MSTR) — the world’s largest corporate crypto treasury — could be billions in the red and “find capital markets essentially closed.” Further declines, he said, could push crypto miners toward bankruptcy.
And in other news of note, Claude is getting a little salty with ChatGPT.
Anthropic said: “We want Claude to act unambiguously in our users’ interests. So we’ve made a choice: Claude will remain ad-free.” The company added that users won’t see “sponsored” links next to their conversations, and Claude’s responses won’t be influenced by advertisers or include third-party product placements they didn’t ask for.
Anthropic didn’t mention ChatGPT or OpenAI by name, but the message is a pretty clear shot across the bow — and the debate over ad-supported AI is now echoing across the entire sector.
Eurozone banks tightened their conditions for loans to businesses in the final three months of 2025, an unexpected development lenders expect will continue in the early months of this year, the European Central Bank said Tuesday.
Publishing the results of a quarterly survey, the ECB said much of the tightening was reported in Germany and France, and “partly but not exclusively” involved loans to businesses that were affected by higher U.S. tariffs.
Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong announces on “The Daily Show” that he’s taking the Los Angeles Times public.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) announced Tuesday that it would be laying off newsroom employees along with other staff across the company, according to the outlet.
About 50 positions will be cut as part of the layoffs and roughly half are newsroom positions, according to the AJC, which is 15% of the paper’s total staff.
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“We’ve made these difficult decisions because we believe they will best position us to continue to accelerate the AJC’s growth,” President and Publisher Andrew Morse said, according to the paper. “We have invested heavily in our editorial, product and business teams over the last three years, and we’ve seen direct results from that investment.”
The paper previously announced in August that it would be cutting jobs and scrapping its print edition starting in 2026, with the final issue scheduled for Dec. 31, 2025.
Copies of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution are seen on a newspaper rack on Aug. 28, 2025, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Elijah Nouvelage / Getty Images)
“As we grow, we must be agile and ensure we are devoting resources where they will have the most impact for our audience,” Morse said. “While these changes are difficult on a personal level, they will best position the AJC to continue delivering journalism worth paying for.”
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The decision to eliminate the print paper resulted in the “elimination of about 30 full- and part-time jobs involved in designing and distributing the newspaper” as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution shifted to digital-only publishing.
Staffers were alerted on Tuesday that the AJC offices would be closed Wednesday, and it would be a remote workday.
Print copies of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution are seen on a newspaper rack inside a Kroger supermarket on Aug. 28, 2025, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Elijah Nouvelage / Getty Images)
Employees affected by the layoffs will be briefed in meetings on Wednesday and will receive severance packages, according to the paper.
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Morse told the AJC that the paper’s owner, Cox Enterprises, believes the transformation to digital only will be beneficial in the long term.
“We are not taking our foot off the gas,” he said. “Cox remains deeply committed to the AJC, our team remains deeply committed to growth, and we will continue to invest in areas that are critical to the growth of our organization.”
Ronda: A storm unleashing up to 35 centimetres (14 inches) of rain in 24 hours battered the Iberian Peninsula on Wednesday, forcing thousands of people in southern Spain from their homes, shutting schools and cancelling trains.
Spanish weather agency AEMET placed parts of the southern region of Andalusia under the highest red alert for the torrential rain dumped by Storm Leonardo.
An “extraordinary amount of rain” was falling in a region where “the ground is very saturated and riverbeds are already carrying a lot of water” from recent precipitation, AEMET spokesman Ruben del Campo said.
The mayor of the nearby city of Ronda, Maria Paz Fernandez, told public broadcaster RTVE that “the ground can no longer absorb” the constant downpours, speaking of “numerous landslides” in the surrounding rural areas.
Andalusia’s top emergency official, Antonio Sanz, told a press conference that the situation was “very worrying” in the nearby mountainous municipality of Grazalema, where AEMET predicted up to 35 centimetres of rain in 24 hours.
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Around 3,500 people had been evacuated in Andalusia, where more than 650 incidents were recorded, none of them causing serious damage, Sanz said, adding that one person was injured in a building collapse. Spanish police published footage of flooded fields and torrents of water that were engulfing buildings and vehicles.Hundreds of soldiers deployed to assist the rescue services, while all Andalusian schools were closed apart from in the region’s easternmost province of Almeria.
State railway company Renfe announced the cancellation of almost all suburban, regional and long-distance trains across Andalusia, with no bus replacement services possible due to the state of the roads, dozens of which were closed.
Scientists say human-driven climate change is worsening the intensity, frequency and length of such extreme weather events.
In October 2024, Spain suffered its deadliest floods in decades with more than 230 people killed, mostly in the eastern region of Valencia.
Portugal hit again In Portugal, the emergency services had dealt with more than 3,300 incidents since Sunday, mostly due to flooding, falling trees and landslides, according to the Civil Protection authority.
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The service had deployed more than 11,000 people to respond to the emergency, and around 200 residents were evacuated in central Portugal on Wednesday.
In Alcacer do Sal, south of Lisbon, the Sado river had burst its banks and the rising water had submerged the town’s main avenue, AFP journalists saw.
The Lisbon region and the Algarve in the south were most affected, with the rain and wind predicted to reach peak intensity overnight Wednesday to Thursday.
Tens of thousands of customers remained cut off from the power grid following last week’s Storm Kristin, which killed five people and injured hundreds.
| Revenue of $121.37M (-12.61% Y/Y) beats by $1.19M
Unifi, Inc. (UFI) Q2 2026 Earnings Call February 4, 2026 8:30 AM EST
Company Participants
Albert Carey – Executive Chairman Edmund Ingle – CEO & Director A.J. Eaker – CFO, Executive VP & Treasurer
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Conference Call Participants
Anthony Lebiedzinski – Sidoti & Company, LLC
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Presentation
Operator
Good morning, and thank you for attending Unifi’s Second Quarter Fiscal 2026 Earnings Conference Call. During this call, management will be referencing a webcast presentation that can be found in the Investor Relations section of unifi.com. Please familiarize yourselves with Page 2 of the slide deck for cautionary statements and non-GAAP measures.
Today’s conference is being recorded [Operator Instructions]. Our speakers are listed on Page 3 of today’s presentation and include Al Carey, Executive Chairman; Eddie Ingle, Chief Executive Officer; A.J. Eaker, Chief Financial Officer.
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I will now turn the call over to Al Carey. Please turn to Page 4 of the presentation. You may begin.
Albert Carey Executive Chairman
Thank you. Well, good morning, everyone, and thanks for joining our call this morning. I’m happy to report that we’re beginning to see results in our business that are coming from a major effort that began one year ago, which is essentially resetting our cost base in North America business. The closing of the Madison facility and the reduction of costs across the board have created clear operating improvements that are going to allow us to make healthy profits on a much smaller sales level.
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Now a couple of highlights, and A.J. will go into more details on these later on. We’re pleased to see improved profit margins improved free cash flow. We have dramatically improved our inventory turns and it’s probably the best we’ve seen in recent history. We have 25% fewer people in North America, and our plant efficiencies have come way up from the summertime now that all
State Street Investment Management CIO Michael Arone breaks down after-the-bell earnings and shares his top stock picks on ‘The Claman Countdown.’
Fox Corporation on Wednesday reported its second-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ estimates amid growth in advertising revenue from the company’s news networks and sports programming.
The company reported $5.18 billion in revenue for the second quarter of its 2026 fiscal year, an increase of 2% from the prior year quarter and above the LSEG estimate of $5.06 billion. Distribution revenues were up 4% in the quarter, driven mainly by 5% growth in Fox’s cable network programming segment.
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Advertising revenues were 1% higher primarily because of higher pricing for ads during sports and news programs, additional MLB postseason games, as well as digital growth led by Tubi – Fox’s free, ad-supported streaming platform. Ad revenue growth was partially offset by lower political advertising revenues and lower ratings.
Fox Corp. is the parent company of Fox News Digital, Fox News Channel and FOX Business Network. (Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Fox’s cable programming, which includes Fox News Channel and FOX Business Network as well as its cable sports networks, grew revenue 5% to $2.28 billion in the quarter, while its advertising revenue rose about 7%.
“Whether streaming, linear, social or digital, Fox News Media continues to meet our audiences where they are,” Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch said on the company’s earnings call. “Over the past 12 months, a fast-moving and consequential news cycle has reinforced Fox News Media’s leadership position, with audiences turning to the network for live coverage and in-depth analysis.”
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Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch noted the rise in advertising revenue despite political ad spending declining compared with last year. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
“Fox News again finished the quarter as the most watched cable network in total day, while maintaining its lead as the most watched cable news network and producing the top 11 cable news programs,” he noted. “According to recent Nielsen data, Fox News is the number one cable news network among all three political parties, which bodes well for the upcoming political election cycle.”
“On the digital side, social media views for Fox News Digital were up an astounding 170% over the prior year, and both Fox News and FOX Business ranked number one in YouTube video views among their peers during the quarter,” Murdoch added.
Murdoch said that Tubi saw its most streamed quarter of all time and grew total viewer time by 27% year over year, with the streaming platform’s content slate expanding to include a simulcast of an NFL game on Thanksgiving.
Fox’s subscription streaming service, Fox One, completed its first full quarter since launching in August, and Murdoch noted the company hasn’t seen any cannibalization of traditional subscribers to date as it looks to market the platform to cord cutters.
He said that live sporting events are driving the majority of engagement on Fox One, news accounts for about one-third of the minutes viewed and that news viewers engage with the platform more frequently than non-news viewers.
