Thai Bourse May Hand Back Tuesday's Gains

(RTTNews) - Ahead of Wednesday's holiday for Queen Suthida's birthday, the Thai stock market had ended the two-day slide in which it had dipped just 2 points or 0.1 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now sits just beneath the 1,590-point plateau although it's likely to turn lower again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on rising oil prices and continuing hostilities in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian markets figure to follow suit.

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

For the day, the index jumped 19.69 points or 1.26 percent to finish at 1,588.06 after trading between 1,567.00 and 1,598.57. Volume was 13.247 billion shares worth 93.010 billion baht. There were 311 gainers and 152 decliners, with 192 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Advanced Info soared 3.12 percent, while Thailand Airport vaulted 1.81 percent, Asset World and TTB Bank both jumped 1.75 percent, Banpu and Siam Concrete both improved 0.88 percent, Bangkok Bank and True Corporation both collected 1.45 percent, B. Grimm added 0.72 percent, BTS Group strengthened 1.96 percent, CP All Public slumped 1.06 percent, Energy Absolute advanced 3.53 percent, Gulf gained 4.03 percent, Kasikornbank expanded 1.49 percent, Krung Thai Bank elevated 1.44 percent, Krung Thai Card rallied 2.50 percent, PTT Oil & Retail increased 0.81 percent, PTT rose 0.69 percent, PTT Exploration and Production climbed 1.06 percent, PTT Global Chemical accelerated 2.99 percent, SCG Packaging surged 5.93 percent, Siam Commercial Bank spiked 2.23 percent and Thai Oil, Charoen Pokphand Foods, Bangkok Dusit Medical and Bangkok Expressway were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened lower on Wednesday and tracked deeper into the red as the day progressed, ending near session lows.

The Dow rumbled 620.72 points or 1.21 percent to finish at 50,687.07, while the NASDAQ sank 239.92 points or 0.89 percent to end at 26,853.98 and the S&P 500 lost 56.10 points or 0.74 percent to close at 7,553.68.

The pullback on Wall Street came on uncertainty about the situation in the Middle East, as negotiations between the U.S and Iran continue to drag on.

U.S. Central Command said U.S. forces defeated multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones and conducted "self-defense" strikes on Qeshm Island in response to attempted attacks by Iran. But the ongoing military exchanges have contributed to a sharp increase by the price of crude oil.

Crude oil prices soared on Wednesday as fresh military strikes in the Middle East renew war concerns as the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked for oil and energy trade. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery was up $2.31 or 2.46 percent at $96.07 per barrel.

In U.S. economic news, the Institute for Supply Management released a report showing its reading on U.S. service sector activity increased by more than expected in the month of May.