Higher Open Anticipated For Thai Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Thai stock market has moved higher in two of three trading days since the end of the five-day losing streak in which it had slumped almost 30 points or 1.9 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now rests just beneath the 1,540-point plateau and it's expected to open in the green again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with technology stocks expected to lead the way higher. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are expected to open in similar fashion.

The SET finished slightly higher on Wednesday following mixed performances from the financial shares and the energy producers.

For the day, the index improved 5.89 points or 0.38 percent to finish at 1,539.32 after trading between 1,535.52 and 1,545.25. Volume was 18.168 billion shares worth 57.500 billion baht. There were 798 gainers and 714 decliners, with 645 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Thailand Airport gained 0.72 percent, while Banpu sank 0.78 percent, Bangkok Bank skidded 1.17 percent, Bangkok Expressway added 0.58 percent, BTS Group shed 0.58 percent, CP All Public retreated 1.23 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods climbed 1.00 percent, Energy Absolute rose 0.32 percent, IRPC increased 0.62 percent, Kasikornbank collected 0.36 percent, Krung Thai Bank lost 0.68 percent, PTT Exploration and Production perked 0.31 percent, Siam Commercial Bank slumped 0.55 percent, Siam Concrete dropped 0.81 percent, Thai Oil declined 0.99 percent, True Corporation surged 3.40 percent, TTB Bank advanced 0.88 percent and Advanced Info, Asset World, Bangkok Dusit Medical, B. Grimm, Gulf, Krung Thai Card, PTT Oil & Retail, PTT, PTT Global Chemical and SCG Packaging were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened mixed and remained that way through much of the session before a late rally pushed them all into the green by the close.

The Dow added 47.79 points or 0.15 percent to finish at 31,874.84, while the NASDAQ surged 184.50 points or 1.58 percent to end at 11,897.65 and the S&P 500 rose 23.21 points or 0.59 percent to close at 3,959.90.

The jump by the NASDAQ reflected strength among tech stocks, which came amid a positive reaction to earnings news from Netflix (NFLX). Semiconductor stocks also turned in a strong performance on the day, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index spiking by 2.5 percent.

On the other hand, gold stocks came under pressure over the course of the session, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 3.1 percent. The weakness among gold stocks came as the price of gold for August delivery fell $10.50 to $1,700.20 an ounce.

In U.S. economic news, the National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales tumbled by much more than expected in June.

Crude oil futures settled lower Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for gasoline demand during the summer driving season. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August ended lower by $1.96 or 1.9 percent at $102.26 a barrel on the expiration day.