FX.co ★ Soft Start Anticipated For Thai Stock Market

Ahead of Wednesday's Visakha Day holiday, the Thai stock market experienced declines for two consecutive sessions, falling by nearly 12 points or 0.9%. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) now sits slightly above the 1,370-point mark, and it is anticipated to dip further on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is unfavorable due to growing concerns over interest rates. Both European and U.S. markets saw declines, and similar trends are expected in Asian markets.

On Tuesday, the SET closed modestly lower, affected by losses in the industrial, property, resource, and technology sectors. The index decreased by 7.87 points, or 0.57%, to end at 1,370.83, trading between 1,367.14 and 1,376.94. There was a trading volume of 13.118 billion shares, valued at 38.402 billion baht, with 287 decliners, 198 gainers, and 175 unchanged stocks.

Key movements included Advanced Info dropping 0.96%, Thailand Airport rising 0.38%, Asset World plummeting 3.96%, Banpu falling 1.72%, Bangkok Bank declining 0.36%, Bangkok Expressway slipping 0.63%, B. Grimm dropping 3.77%, BTS Group gaining 0.83%, CP All Public rising 1.28%, Charoen Pokphand Foods advancing 0.90%, Energy Absolute sinking 5.14%, Gulf falling 1.79%, PTT Oil & Retail decreasing 0.55%, PTT declining 0.74%, PTT Exploration and Production falling 2.21%, PTT Global Chemical dropping 2.63%, SCG Packaging decreasing 0.75%, Siam Commercial Bank gaining 0.47%, Siam Concrete falling 1.21%, Thai Oil dropping 3.35%, True Corporation declining 1.17%, TTB Bank rising 0.57%, while Kasikornbank, Krung Thai Bank, Krung Thai Card, and Bangkok Dusit Medical remained unchanged.

Wall Street also showed softness as major averages hovered around the baseline for the first half of Wednesday, only to slip late in the day. The Dow tumbled 201.95 points, or 0.51%, to close at 39,671.04. The NASDAQ decreased by 31.08 points, or 0.18%, ending at 16,801.54, and the S&P 500 fell by 14.40 points, or 0.27%, to conclude at 5,307.01.

This weakness in U.S. markets emerged as Federal Reserve minutes suggested officials anticipate maintaining current interest rate levels longer than previously expected. During the April 30-May 1 meeting, participants noted disappointing inflation readings in the first quarter and strong economic momentum indicators. While there was discussion on reducing policy restraints should the labor market weaken unexpectedly, officials also showed readiness to raise rates further if inflation risks materialize.

Additionally, oil prices fell to a two-month low on Wednesday following unexpected rises in U.S. crude oil inventories. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July dropped by $1.09 or 1.4%, settling at $77.57 per barrel.

Closer to home, Thailand is set to release April data for imports, exports, and trade balance today. In March, imports rose by 5.6% year-on-year, while exports declined by 10.9%, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.160 billion.