Stick to the fundamentals, that's the lesson
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Citing Moody's Analytics, some online news media are saying "Thailand's growth prospects are the 'dimmest' among all Asean nations" (as of May 15).
Iran has been under sanctions for many years because of nuclear issues, but sanctions did not wreck Iran’s economy. Iranians became austere, flexible and creative, not only strengthening the Iranian economy but also building nuclear power for electricity at the same time.
Russia came under sanctions because of its actions in Ukraine, but sanctions did not wreck Russia’s economy. Bloomberg Business online, for example, said that “Russia’s currency went from the world’s worst performer to the best in the first three months of this year” (as of April 6).
Iran and Russia practice old-fashioned capitalism, “tightening the belt” when necessary and (in the case of Russia) letting its currency seek its own level in foreign exchanges without much government intervention.
Capitalism works best when governments stick to fundamentals and let capitalism do what it was always meant to do.
Guy Baker
