Thai Bourse Likely To Remain Rangebound

(RTTNews) - The Thai stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the previous five trading days since the end of the five-day winning streak in which it had advanced more than 50 points or 4.3 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now sits just beneath the 1,215-point plateau and it's poised to inch higher again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher on better-than-expected inflation data. The European and U.S. markets were mostly higher and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.

The SET finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the consumer, industrial, property and technology sectors.

For the day, the index gained 3.45 points or 0.28 percent to finish at 1,214.39 after trading between 1,212.19 and 1,231.02. Volume was 8.855 billion shares worth 50.869 billion baht. There were 340 gainers and 176 decliners, with 145 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Thailand Airport surrendered 3.85 percent, while Asset World soared 6.93 percent, Banpu stumbled 2.04 percent, Bangkok Bank collected 0.70 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical lost 0.41 percent, Bangkok Expressway spiked 2.50 percent, B. Grimm increased 0.83 percent, BTS Group expanded 6.03 percent, CP All Public slumped 1.44 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods dropped 0.95 percent, Energy Absolute strengthened 1.64 percent, Gulf retreated 1.49 percent, Kasikornbank fell 0.30 percent, Krung Thai Bank added 0.45 percent, Krung Thai Card tumbled 2.73 percent, PTT Oil & Retail plunged 4.90 percent, PTT sank 0.80 percent, PTT Exploration and Production jumped 1.48 percent, PTT Global Chemical surged 4.66 percent, SCG Packaging skyrocketed 9.55 percent, Siam Commercial Bank improved 0.84 percent, Siam Concrete accelerated 3.86 percent, Thai Oil rallied 1.83 percent, True Corporation plummeted 4.72 percent, TTB Bank gained 0.53 percent and Advanced Info was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mixed as the Dow opened in the red and remained there throughout, while the NASDAQ and S&P 500 were in positive territory from start to finish.

The Dow slumped 269.67 points or 0.64 percent to finish at 42,140.43, while the NASDAQ surged 301.74 points or 1.61 percent to close at 19,010.08 and the S&P 500 gained 42.36 points or 0.72 percent to end at 5,886.55.

The continued strength in the broader markets followed the release of a Labor Department report showing consumer prices in the U.S. rose less than expected in April.

The slightly tamer-than-expected inflation data eased concerns about President Donald Trump's new tariffs on U.S. trade partners leading to higher prices.

Meanwhile, a steep drop by shares of UnitedHealth (UNH) weighed on the Dow, with the healthcare giant plunging by 17.8 percent after the company suspended its full-year guidance.

Crude oil prices showed another significant move to the upside on Tuesday, reaching its highest closing level in almost a month on optimism about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery surged $1.72 or 2.8 percent to $63.67 a barrel.