This means long-term gains for the ISHARES MSCI THAI (NYSE:THD) Thailand index, says Irwin Greenstein writing for Contrarian Profits.

The index is down 21.83 percent over the past six months. But it almost certainly got dragged down with other emerging-market investments thanks to high inflation rates…

Thailand has quietly become a top market for car and truck makers. The country’s inexpensive and talented labor pool gives the majors a gateway into the rapidly growing Asian markets.

In a closed-door meeting, representatives of the U.S. Commercial Service called Thailand the Detroit of the ASEAN Region (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations).

They cited assembling operations for Ford, GM, Toyota, Isuzu, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, BMW, Daimler Chrysler, Mazda and others.    

Nissan invested more than $190 million in two local assemblers to up its stake from 25% to 75%. Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn told BusinessWeek magazine: “Thailand offers a great opportunity for Nissan. There’s potential for growth, and it’s an excellent base for us to expand our presence in the region.”

Another Japanese giant, Toyota, has committed at least $750 million to build a research and development center and boost its manufacturing capacity to 350,000 cars a year from 260,000.  Ford is well into a $500-million expansion of the local factories of Ford and its affiliate, Mazda.

Honda and Mitsubishi have also moved ahead with new investments in the country. Naturally, parts major makers are also flocking to Thailand. Visteon, Delphi and Denso are reaping the same benefits as the big car and truck manufacturers.

Thailand’s success signals a new world order in the vehicle market. The question you need to ask yourself is: Am I an old-world investor or a new world investor?

Key
ALL ORDINARIES IDX (ASX: ^AORD) Australia
BSE SENSEX (Bombay: ^BSESN) India
IBOVESPA SAO PAULO (^BVSP) Brazil
EGYPT CMA GENL INDX (Cairo: ^CCSI) Egypt
HANG SENG INDEX (HKSE: ^HSI) Hong Kong
COMPOSITE INDEX (Jakarta: ^JKSE) Jakarta
COMPOSITE INDEX (Kuala Lumpur: ^KLSE) Kuala Lumpar
KOSPI Composite Index (KSE: ^KS11) South Korea
MERVAL BUENOS AIRES (Buenos Aires: ^MERV) Argentina
IPC (Mexico: ^MXX) Mexico
NZX 50 INDEX GROSS (NZSE: ^NZ50) New Zealand
IGBM (Madrid: ^SMSI) Spain
TEL-AV TASE-100 IND (^TA100) Israel
TSEC weighted index (Taiwan: ^TWII) Taiwan
SSE Composite Index (Shanghai: 000001.SS) Shanghai
iShares MSCI South Africa Index (EZA) South Africa
RTSI INDEX (RUS: RTS.RS) Russia
ISHARES MSCI THAILAN (NYSEArca: THD) Thailand
iShares MSCI Turkey Invest Mkt Index (TUR) Turkey

Our index shows one thing clearly. When it comes to Big Media’s news rant about wild inflation in emerging markets, you’re not getting the full story. Despite double-digit inflation in resource-rich Russia, Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia, there is still money to be made from the oil, natural gas and other commodities that these countries export to the rest of the world.

The news gap between what you read in Big Media and what our index proves is that inflation impacts the man on the street. Commodities, meanwhile, contribute to the inflation through rising prices that are making investors rich.

With commodities, it’s very possible that the gains you realize far outstrip the corrosive effects of inflation.

For example, our big winner today is Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index (HKSE: ^HSI). It was largely driven by gains in coal, oil and shipping. ^HSI is a perfect illustration of what I just mentioned about the disconnect between inflation and market gains in economies fueled by the commodity boom.

If you look at the big winners in the ^HSI, notably oil and shipping, they are the culprits blamed for global inflation. And if you had money in ^HSI, your gains could have been much higher than the rate of inflation — putting you ahead.

Sure, you’re feeling the pain of spiking prices in gas, groceries and utilities. But investors are still making money in emerging markets. Are you?

Have a great weekend.

Irwin Greenstein

Source: Taipan Emerging Market Index Gains 44.2%