COSTAS PARIS and JENNY PARIS
Wall Street Journal
SINGAPORE -- Thailand Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Saturday that he will likely call early elections after the economy has firmly recovered.
"The likelihood is that there will be early elections once the economy is firmly grounded," Mr. Abhisit said on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. "The early poll could be called any time," he said, declining to specify a timeframe.
Mr. Abhisit had been expected to wait until near the end of his term in late 2011, but calling for early polls would help legitimize the rule of a prime minister who was selected by Parliament, not through a popular mandate.
Meanwhile, a recurring theme at the forum has been the falling dollar, which -- along with the Chinese yuan, that largely moves in tandem with the greenback -- has been hurting Asia's export-reliant economies.
Thailand's central bank is among many in Asia that have been selling their currencies for dollars in recent months. "All we can do is to stop excessive volatility, and we have to adapt," Mr. Abhisit said. "For China, or any other government, having a misaligned currency serves nobody. So, eventually it will be corrected."
Mr. Abhisit said the government will continue to accommodate exporters, suggesting he believes the Bank of Thailand won't raise interest rates anytime soon and put further upward pressure on the baht.
The central bank has bought $15 billion so far this year to curb the local currency's rise, Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said this week, adding that the weakness of the yuan will likely require further intervention by Asia's central banks.
Mr. Abhisit said the Thai economy will likely shrink 3%-3.5% this year but rebound next year, when "3.5% growth is achievable."
"At the moment, the Bank of Thailand needs to accommodate growth until inflation edges up," the premier said. "We don't see signs of inflation yet."
Mr. Abhisit said that while Thailand is working on various ways to strengthen the domestic economy, the government will continue to support export growth.
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn told Asian leaders in Singapore this week that they shouldn't heavily rely on exports and should find other ways to boost growth. He said Asian currencies are undervalued and that regional leaders shouldn't be afraid to let them strengthen.
Mr. Abhisit said, "We could go on with a very high portion of our GDP relying on exports, but we should target other export markets than our traditional ones," referring to the U.S. and Japan. He said China and India will take up some of the reduced demand from the U.S. and Japan.
Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have soured further recently with Cambodia's decision to appoint Thailand's previous Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as their economic adviser. Mr. Abhisit said Mr. Thaksin still has "a lot of support, but he should accept the consequences of his actions and take responsibility for breaking the law."
Mr. Thaksin is wanted in Thailand on corruption charges. He is on self-imposed exile to avoid arrest.
—Leigh Murray and Phisanu Phromchanya in Bangkok contributed to this article.
"The likelihood is that there will be early elections once the economy is firmly grounded," Mr. Abhisit said on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. "The early poll could be called any time," he said, declining to specify a timeframe.
Mr. Abhisit had been expected to wait until near the end of his term in late 2011, but calling for early polls would help legitimize the rule of a prime minister who was selected by Parliament, not through a popular mandate.
Meanwhile, a recurring theme at the forum has been the falling dollar, which -- along with the Chinese yuan, that largely moves in tandem with the greenback -- has been hurting Asia's export-reliant economies.
Thailand's central bank is among many in Asia that have been selling their currencies for dollars in recent months. "All we can do is to stop excessive volatility, and we have to adapt," Mr. Abhisit said. "For China, or any other government, having a misaligned currency serves nobody. So, eventually it will be corrected."
Mr. Abhisit said the government will continue to accommodate exporters, suggesting he believes the Bank of Thailand won't raise interest rates anytime soon and put further upward pressure on the baht.
The central bank has bought $15 billion so far this year to curb the local currency's rise, Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said this week, adding that the weakness of the yuan will likely require further intervention by Asia's central banks.
Mr. Abhisit said the Thai economy will likely shrink 3%-3.5% this year but rebound next year, when "3.5% growth is achievable."
"At the moment, the Bank of Thailand needs to accommodate growth until inflation edges up," the premier said. "We don't see signs of inflation yet."
Mr. Abhisit said that while Thailand is working on various ways to strengthen the domestic economy, the government will continue to support export growth.
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn told Asian leaders in Singapore this week that they shouldn't heavily rely on exports and should find other ways to boost growth. He said Asian currencies are undervalued and that regional leaders shouldn't be afraid to let them strengthen.
Mr. Abhisit said, "We could go on with a very high portion of our GDP relying on exports, but we should target other export markets than our traditional ones," referring to the U.S. and Japan. He said China and India will take up some of the reduced demand from the U.S. and Japan.
Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have soured further recently with Cambodia's decision to appoint Thailand's previous Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as their economic adviser. Mr. Abhisit said Mr. Thaksin still has "a lot of support, but he should accept the consequences of his actions and take responsibility for breaking the law."
Mr. Thaksin is wanted in Thailand on corruption charges. He is on self-imposed exile to avoid arrest.
—Leigh Murray and Phisanu Phromchanya in Bangkok contributed to this article.
2 comments:
Led by the AbiSHIT govervnment who stole power
thanks to hun sen he is more popular and might win the elections.
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