Rally May Stall For Thai Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Thai stock market has finished higher in two straight sessions, collecting more than 20 points or 1.6 percent along the way. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now sits just above the 1,230-point plateau although it may spin its wheels on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is flat to lower ahead of the FOMC rate decision scheduled for later today. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The SET finished sharply higher on Tuesday following gains from the food, consumer, finance, industrial, property, resource and service sectors.

For the day, the index jumped 16.53 points or 1.36 percent to finish at 1,233.68 after trading between 1,213.87 and 1,235.19. Volume was 9.354 billion shares worth 51.323 billion baht. There were 327 gainers and 140 decliners, with 190 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Advanced Info fell 0.34 percent, while Asset World dropped 0.95 percent, Banpu rallied 3.46 percent, Bangkok Bank strengthened 1.69 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical gathered 1.43 percent, Bangkok Expressway rose 0.93 percent, B. Grimm soared 5.41 percent, BTS Group was up 2.31 percent, CP All Public and Gulf both increased 1.61 percent, Energy Absolute expanded 2.82 percent, Kasikornbank advanced 0.94 percent, Krung Thai Bank collected 0.47 percent, Krung Thai Card spiked 2.70 percent, PTT Oil & Retail added 2.31 percent, PTT gained 2.33 percent, PTT Exploration and Production jumped 5.60 percent, PTT Global Chemical skyrocketed 10.65 percent, SCG Packaging surged 7.91 percent, Siam Commercial Bank improved 1.21 percent, Siam Concrete accelerated 2.50 percent, Thai Oil exploded 7,69 percent, True Corporation sank 0.93 percent, TTB Bank climbed 1.06 percent and Charoen Pokphand Foods and Thailand Airport were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened mixed on Tuesday but quickly turned lower, ending near session lows.

The Dow slumped 204.57 points or 0.46 percent to finish at 44,632.99, while the NASDAQ shed 80.29 points or 0.38 percent to close at 21,098.29 and the S&P 500 sank 18.91 points or 0.30 percent to end at 6,370.86.

The pullback on Wall Street may reflected profit taking following the upward trend seen over the past several sessions, which saw the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 reach new record highs.

Traders also seemed reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement later today. While the Fed is expected to leave interest rates unchanged, the announcement could impact the outlook for rates.

In economic news, the Conference Board released a report showing consumer confidence in the U.S. saw a modest improvement in July. Also, the Labor Department said job openings in the U.S. decreased by slightly less than expected in June.

Crude oil prices moved higher on Tuesday as the U.S. deadline for Russia to finalize an agreement with Ukraine or face sanctions draws nearer. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was up $2.81 or 4.21 percent to $69.52 per barrel.