Could Premier-elect Thaksin ax market reforms?
Call it the Revenge of Thailand Inc. With the resounding Jan. 6 election victory of Thaksin Shinawatra, Thai executives at last have a leader who feels their pain. For the past three years, the Bangkok business community has chafed under the austerity policies of the administration of Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai. Foreign investors and the International Monetary Fund generally applauded Chuan’s slow, steady postcrisis approach. But the business elite criticized his government for not doing enough to spur domestic demand, get the banks lending again, and protect local companies from foreign takeovers. Now, Thai executives will have one of their own in the Prime Minister’s chair. For how long is an open question, of course, because Thaksin may be forced to step down if a constitutional court upholds a ruling that he improperly hid assets. The charismatic telecom tycoon vows to rule by proxy if necessary, but how that would work is unclear. Assuming Thaksin survives politically, the busin
