Bangkok (VNA) - The baht's appreciation is threatening the Thai tourism sector and causing ripple effects on businesses, which are struggling to deal with the sluggish economy, according to the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI). The strengthening of the currency could cause foreign tourist arrivals to miss this year's target of 40 million, resulting in Thailand losing an opportunity to benefit from their spending during their time in the country. Foreign travellers' demand for the baht would also decrease as they have to spend more to purchase goods and use services. A slowdown in the tourism industry could also affect new investment projects in this sector, including plans to build new hotels, he added. According to the Bank of Thailand, the weighted-average interbank exchange rate stood at 31.8 baht to the US dollar as of September 19.