Henderson Global Investors Ltd. is loading up on Thailand's stocks and Western Asset Management Co. is buying the nation's bonds on optimism Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's two-month-old government will bring stability and avert a recession, Bloomberg reported.
"Thailand has a very good chance to make solid progress over the next few years after a period of conflict and stagnation," said Andrew Beal, a London-based fund manager at Henderson, which manages about 51.2 billion euros ($64 billion). "I've been increasing my exposure in recent months as the political situation has started to become a little clearer."
Investors are growing more confident after Parliament's December election of Oxford University-educated Abhisit ended three months of anti-government protests. The 44-year-old premier said yesterday the government plans to invest 2 trillion baht ($56.6 billion) over three to four years, mainly on infrastructure projects.
The benchmark SET index, Asia's worst performer during the past five years, has dropped 1.9 percent Since Dec. 31, compared with an 8.7 percent decline in the MSCI Emerging Markets Asia Index. The Thai baht lost 2.2 percent against the dollar, compared with a 14 percent slump for South Korea's won, the region's worst performer. Thailand's government bonds dropped 3.1 percent, indexes compiled by HSBC Holdings Plc. show.
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