Thailand has been a “leading beneficiary” from the ongoing trade fight between Washington and Beijing, according to Standard Chartered’s Clive McDonnell.
Although regionally Vietnam has often been named as one of the biggest winners from the fallout of the U.S.-China trade war, he pointed to the Thai baht “appreciating strongly” against the dollar as evidence of the Southeast Asian nation benefiting from the U.S.-China trade war, as reported in a CNBC article.
Since the start of the year, the Thai currency has appreciated more than 6% against the dollar.
The trade battle has “increased the importance of Thailand” as a base for manufacturing Japanese goods such as auto parts and electronics to be exported to America, McDonnell explained in an email to CNBC. Japan is Thailand’s largest source of foreign direct investment, he said.
Regionally, Vietnam has often been named as one of the biggest winners from the fallout of the U.S.-China trade war.
However, data so far suggests that Vietnam has a long way to go before it can match China’s manufacturing capabilities.