has ta ken on the throne, king maha vajiralongkorn has taken the throne in his 605.nality, we are not free to talk about him here because of these laws but it will be a very different monarch. he's made it clear he wants to be an active monarch and have a significant influence on political develop mint and i think people recognise this is a historic turning point for the country. there is any of some anxiety and uncertainty about what will happen thailand now. thanks for the update, we have to leave it there are now. jonathan will be back for more on the funeral possession later on. herve lemahieu is a research fellow from think tank the lowy in5titute for international policy — hejoins me now from sydney. thank you so much forjoining u5, tell us, how did the late king achieve the power that he did both politically and also in the hearts of the people? you are right, it is a double achievement because when he came to power, when he took the throne in 19116 the institution of the monarchy wa5 throne in 19116 the institution of the monarchy was much weaker than it i5 t

the day's rituals began with king maha vajiralongkorn lighting candles inside the grand palace in front of his father's coffin, in a ceremony attended by buddhist monks chanting prayers. later he'll light the royal pyre to cremate his father. an army of builders and artisans has spent the year constructing a huge purpose—built crematorium beside bangkok's grand palace. and these images are trending widely. they show thousands of mourners camping on the streets of bangkok ahead of the funeral procession and cremation. many arrived in the city days early in their determination to pay their last respects to the revered monarch. more on that to come, stay with us. a rise in interest rates next week is looking increasingly likely, after the economy performed better than expected between june and september. gdp rose by 0.4%. now on bbc news all the latest business news live from singapore. the us dollar is on the rise, boosted by speculation the federal reserve may get a new caucus chief. let's cross over to thailand where the funeral procession is underway. we are witnesses live pictures ins