Thailand’s Newfound Economic Stardom Comes With Caveats

Once synonymous with the crisis that brought on an Asia-wide financial meltdown a generation ago, Thailand gets almost rave reviews now. This relative resilience of its economy may be tested by a pronounced downturn and a re-awakening of the country’s deep political divisions.

Calamity appears to be the last thing on investors’ minds when they think of Thailand these days. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. even likened the nation to a “safe haven.” Among the kingdom’s attributes are a resurgence in tourism, low foreign debt and a surplus in the broadest measure of trade. That’s a halo historically associated with Switzerland, Japan or prized asset classes like US Treasuries. The baht, whose nosedive in 1997 wrote the opening chapter in an emerging-market upheaval, was one of the most sought-after Asian currencies last quarter. Investors have been…