Thai Shares Tipped To End Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - Ahead of Thursday's holiday for Chakri Day, the Thai stock market had finished lower in three straight sessions, slumping almost 40 points or 2.5 percent along the way. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now rests just above the 1,570-point plateau although it may find traction on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is flat to higher, ahead of closely watched employment data from the U.S. later today. The European and U.S. bourses saw mild upside and the Asian markets figure to follow suit.

The SET finished sharply lower on Wednesday with damage across the board, especially among the resource stocks and financial shares.

For the day, the index tumbled 22.92 points or 1.44 percent to finish at 1,571.13 after trading between 1,569.37 and 1,594.69. Volume was 12.563 billion shares worth 48.882 billion baht. There were 1,212 decliners and 319 gainers, with 360 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Advanced Info plunged 1.88 percent, while Asset World weakened 1.72 percent, Bangkok Bank sank 0.97 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical Service shed 0.82 percent, Bangkok Expressway added 0.56 percent, Banpu tanked 1.82 percent, B. Grimm rallied 2.60 percent, BTS lost 0.69 percent, Energy Absolute slumped 1.32 percent, Gulf eased 0.47 percent, Kasikornbank dropped 1.52 percent, Krung Thai Bank declined 1.80 percent, Krung Thai Card tumbled 1.88 percent, PTT Oil & Retail and Thai Oil both dove 1.41 percent, PTT lost 0.79 percent, PTT Exploration and Production slipped 0.62 percent, PTT Global Chemical was down 0.56 percent, SCG Packaging stumbled 1.65 percent, Siam Commercial Bank fell 0.48 percent, TTB Bank slid 0.70 percent and True Corporation, CP All Public, Charoan Pokphand Foods, Siam Concrete and Airport of Thailand were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages shook off early weakness to move higher and end in the green.

The Dow perked 2.57 points or 0.01 percent to finish at 33,485.29, while the NASDAQ jumped 91.09 points or 0.76 percent to end at 12,087.96 and the S&P 500 rose 14.64 added 14.64 points or 0.36 percent to close at 4,105.02.

The markets are closed on Good Friday; for the holiday-shortened week, the Dow climbed by 0.6 percent, while the S&P 500 eased 0.1 percent and the tech-heavy NASDAQ slumped 1.1 percent.

The early weakness on Wall Street reflected lingering concerns about the economic outlook following disappointing data. The Labor Department noted a drop in initial jobless claims last week.

Selling pressure waned shortly after the start of trading, however, as traders seem reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of the Labor Department's more closely watched employment report later today.

Crude oil futures settled slightly higher Thursday and posted gains for a third straight week, buoyed by OPEC's decision to cut production. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $0.09 at $80.70 a barrel. WTI crude rose gained more than 6 percent this week.