by leah
The Thai baht hit a five-week high this morning after pro-democracy parties came out as the biggest winners in Sunday’s General Election after nearly a decade of military-backed rule in Thailand.
The baht rallied 0.9% this morning to 33.70 against the greenback for the first time since April 5 after opposition parties Move Forward Pary (MFP) and Phue Thai won the majority of seats by a mile, paving the way for a coalition to wrangle power away from the military and back into the hands of the population.
Parties associated with the military received much less support, with the United Thai Nation party and Palang Pracharath parties receiving around 10% and 12% of the vote, respectively. But, with Parliamentary rules written by the military junta, no coalition is certain just yet in Thailand.
Either way, the vocal call for change was overwhelming and sent the baht’s value shooting upward this morning. The baht may get a further boost as data published today reveals that Thailand’s economy expanded at a faster rate in Q1. According to Bloomberg, Thailand’s gross domestic product rose 2.3% from one year ago.
(Source: – Asean Now)
