BANGKOK — Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra blamed political upheaval for derailing the economy on Thursday, taking a long view of the country's economic woes in his first speech to parliament even as he faced legal hurdles threatening his fledgling government.
Paetongtar's speech, the official start of work for his new cabinet, is no small relief for Southeast Asia's second-largest economy. The new prime minister, elected in mid-August and sworn in on Saturday, inherits an economy plagued by stagnant incomes, high debt and the cost of living, an aging workforce and falling productivity.