Thai Stock Market Set To Snap Losing Streak

The Thai stock market has moved lower in four straight sessions, slipping almost 15 points or 1 percent along the way. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now rests just above the 1,550-point plateau and it’s likely to find traction on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive, supported by crude oil prices and bargain hunting. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The SET finished barely lower on Monday following losses from the financial shares and a mixed picture from the energy producers.

For the day, the index eased 0.59 points or 0.04 percent to finish at 1,551.85 after trading between 1,547.14 and 1,559.60. Volume was 38.520 billion shares worth 78.740 billion baht. There were 1,059 decliners and 570 gainers, with 448 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Advanced Info fell 0.29 percent, while Asset World advanced 0.86 percent, Bangkok Bank dropped 0.87 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical shed 0.47 percent, Bangkok Expressway lost 0.65 percent, BTS Group tanked 2.27 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods sank 0.92 percent, Kasikornbank retreated 1.66 percent, Krung Thai Bank declined 0.93 percent, Krung Thai Card jumped 1.97 percent, PTT Oil & Retail gained 0.85 percent, PTT slid 0.65 percent, PTT Exploration and Production rose 0.43 percent, PTT Global Chemical dipped 0.39 percent, SCG Packaging improved 0.86 percent, Siam Concrete tumbled 1.81 percent, TTB Bank was down 0.88 percent and Thailand Airport, Bangkok Asset Management, Gulf and Siam Commercial Bank were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is firm as the major averages opened solidly higher on Monday and picked up steam as the session progressed.

The Dow climbed 186.14 points or 0.54 percent to finish at 34,393.98, while the NASDAQ jumped 190.18 points or 1.41 percent to end at 13,661.17 and the S&P 500 advanced 41.19 points or 0.99 percent to close at 4,197.05.

The gains on Wall Street came as continued optimism about global economic recovery and the momentum in vaccination drive outweighed concerns over inflation and fears of monetary tightening by central banks.

While the Federal Reserve has repeatedly signaled it believes the recent increase in inflation largely reflects “transitory factors,” a spike in prices could still raise concerns about the central bank tapering its asset purchases.

Crude oil futures climbed higher on Monday as inconclusive nuclear deal negotiations with Iran and reports of a possible hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico supporting prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July surged $2.47 or 3.9 percent at $66.05 a barrel.